JeepinJer

Just wondering if there are other volunteer or professional Search And Rescue people on the forum that have outfitted and/or utilized their JK's to find and assist a victim.

Would love to swap stories or see pics!

I'm a volunteer here in West Michigan and have been involved for 10 years now. Although my JK (or previous pickup) has never had to haul any victims out of the woods, they have always got me and my team where we need to go. We don't have a lot of searches but we do enjoy giving back to the community and the comradery of the group.

What modifications have you done to your JK?

I'm TRYING to keep mine on the mild side for dependability. Installed a TF 2.5" BB and 285/70-17 AT's. Also made my own roof rack for carrying kayaks on the hard top. Added a Kenwood Mobile Ham Radio, too many GPS's, recovery gear, first aid pack, hand held spot light, a couple hella driving lights, tool box, and other misc.

Ryanc

How do you get into something like that? Maybe outfit a military trailer to transport your extra things.

JeepinJer

Hey Ryanc,
I was looking for someway to give back to the community (Police Reserve, Volunteer Fireman) when a buddy of mine at work told me about the SAR group he was in. I was hooked right away.
If your interested, do an internet search for Search And Rescue in your local area.
I do have a utility trailer that I built up with 31"-10.5"-15" tires. Have never needed it though. We pack pretty light so everything fits in the back.
P.S. GO Gators! (grew up in Florida)

smallzphoto

Im not a member of C.E.R.T. yet here in LA cause i just moved but Im always ready anyway haha. Got go bags, tow supplies, first aid etc....

I was at the store the other day though and saw a red JK with a C.E.R.T. decal on the back window and it made me feel that much safer all of a sudden
It was at the Albertsons in Los Feliz so if that JK owner is watching.... Cheers to you!!!

Viperpilot611

I'm a CERT member in DFW. I keep a basic kit in my jeep. Most of the modifications I have done haven't been related to SAR. I maintain a cb, first aid kit, handheld GPS, recovery gear, fire extinguisher, LED flashlight in the vehicle. (Not HAM certified yet, but its on my list)

When heading out on call, I'll add my pack kit which includes tent, sleeping bag, climbing gear, stove, food, water, etc.

I'm planning on adding gear to make it more expedition capable which was recommended by our SAR coordinator here. That list so far is:

AEV or Teraflex lift kit (Haven't decide yet)
AEV front bumper with winch.
AEV rear bumper with tire carrier and water pump.
35" tires (No brands or types picked)
Roof rack
IPF 900XS lights for windshield mounts.
Smittybilt G.E.A.R tailgate cover for mounting various gear.
Viair Onboard Air Kit (Constant Duty)
ARB Fridge Freezer

Christine

I am the CERT Coordinator for the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. I run CERT for the entire Antelope Valley. In May 2010 I started a CERT off-road emergency Response team. We have several goals:
1) The Antelope Valley has several communities with canyons and mountains. There are a lot of very rural houses way off the beaten path. In times of great disaster, our goal is to get to those people, render first aid, call for transport or transport ourselves.
2) Get portable Ham repeaters to mountain tops to extend communications.
3) In times of snow, transport Sheriff, CHP, doctors and nurses to their place of employment.

Those are the major goals of the team. On a daily basis we render aid to accident victims we come across, we can also direct traffic at an accident if CHP isn't there....the list goes on.

We have wildfires quite often. Last year, there was one in the mountains. For some reason, Fire was late in responding so Sheriff had to set up their ICS. (Incident Command System). No one knew of all the houses tucked away in back canyons. A few of my team members lived nearby and responded. They went to all the houses to inform people to evacuate. In a couple instances, they helped evacuate. They were throwing rabbits in cages, gathering other animals, helping people load items. One time, I had to close down the South bound 14 Freeway by myself. There was a lady with a baby in a broken down car on the left shoulder. She couldn't get across the freeway. The tow truck was on the right shoulder. No CHP in sight after calling them 3 times. I had my husbands large F250 with a traffic bar on the back (all our vehicles have traffic bars). I put on my traffic vest, grabbed my stop sign and stopped all traffic so the lady could cross the freeway and the tow truck could get the car. Yes, some people were pissed but others yelled out "nice job". This was all done and CHP never showed up.

Since starting the CERT off road team, I have arranged training. Our Search & Rescue Sgt at the Sheriff station loves our group. He arranged for our group to take the Sheriff 4x4 school. It was so cool! SAR has invited us to all their training exercises this year. They meet once a month.
I have a friend who's an extreme 4x4'er for over 20 years. He's been our instructor for Self recovery, winching and other things.
With help of our local Rotary club (and Jeep dealership owner) I got a donation of $3000 for 12 members of my team to take Map/Compass and Man Tracking training. I am currently arranging free Map/Compass/Man Tracking training for the rest of my team. I'm also working on Wilderness Survival Training for April. A two day class will cost about $120 a person. www.earthskills.com.

I am very well qualified. I am a Volunteer Sheriff, I am Ham radio licensed, also FEMA ICS trained along with other FEMA accreditations. I'm CERT trained, First aid/ CPR/AEM, SAR....the list just goes on.

Most of our vehicles are JK's. We all have to carry certain items. Our vehicles have to have certain equipment to qualify. I have 2 members from the JK forum on the team; Poordad and Glen. Glen is our instructor who also volunteers his own time to teach. Poordad has arranged for me to pick up free supplies for our team. It's an amazing team.

I could seriously go on for pages with this.

I do all this as a Volunteer. I am not paid for any of this. I truely believe in what I'm doing.
If anyone is interested in CERT training, check with their local Fire Department. I know with all the budget cuts, the CERT program is the first to get hit. Plus in California our new Gov. Brown has decided to cut Firefighting crews by 25%. The Sheriff and Fire Dept are constantly getting hit with budget cuts.

If anyone has any questions, wants more info, please PM me. I'll be glad to answer any questions.

Christine

Here is a list of just some of the stuff we carry:

CERT kit (which includes first aid, food, water, personal care, triage supplies and more)

Safety Seal tire repair kit
Shovel
Axe
Tow straps 20-30 ft, 2-3" wide no hooks-rated for double vehicle weight
Fire Extinguisher – Properly mounted and maintained
Safety Road Flares
Tow Points/Hooks – Properly mounted – FRONT AND REAR of vehicle.
2-3/4" D-ring (minimum)
Basic Tool Set/Box.
Battery Jumper Cables
CB Mobile Radio/Ham (or Hand Held with 12v power adaptor and magnet mount antenna)
Full Size Spare Tire (Within 2” Diameter of vehicle’s tires)
hi lift jack or equivalent with removable handle

Hand Held (w/vehicle mounting kit) GPS receiver.
5 Gal. Water can.
Mobile Scanner
Winch, Snatch Block & wheel chalks (2 minimum).
Tree saver strap
12 Volt Handheld Spot Light
tire gauge
12 v air compressor or CO2 tank
Optional:
12 Volt Magnet Mount AMBER or GREEN Flashing Safety Beacon
hand come-along
18" length of chain with Grade 8 nut and bolt
extra fuel and fluids, spare parts, heavy leather gloves (should already be in CERT kit), off-road lighting, locker/s, blanket/s (should already have emergency blanket in CERT kit).

This is what we carry as a MINIMUM, I carry quite a bit more.

- 2 Emergency Food Bar, 2400 calorie
- 24 Emergency Drinking Water Packets
- 4 12 hour lightsticks
- 2 Emergency Survival Blanket
- 2 Packet of Pocket Tissue
- 30 Antiseptic Towelettes
- 14 Industrial Strength Waste Bags
- 1 Backpack-style Carrying Pack
- 2 Hygiene Kits
- 2 Emergency Ponchos
- 2 Whistles
- 1 Tube Tent

First Aid Kit contains:
- 1 Cold Pack, Instant Chemical
- 4 Adhesive Bandages 1" x 3"
- 2 Adhesive Bandage Strip, XL
- 6 Sterile Gauze Pads 4" x 4"
- 1 Tape, 1" x 5yd.
- 4 Antibacterial Ointments
- 4 Tongue Depressors (splints)
- 4 Sterile Cotton Tips (2 x 2-pack)
- 1 Triangular Bandage
- 4 Antiseptic wipes
- 4 Butterfly Closures
- 1 Pair of Nitrile Gloves
- 1 Elastic Bandage 3"
- 1 ABD Pads 5" x 9"
- 2 Non-Adherent Pads 3" x 4"
- 1 Gauze Clean Wrap N/S 3"
- 1 First Aid Guide

Viperpilot611

Ya'll must have different responsibilities than we do locally. Most of the CERTs I have been involved in Texas are extremely limited and only allowed to operate under specific circumstances or call outs.

Its very cool that ya'll get to do so much.

Christine

So is the regular CERT program. This is something I started on my own. I think it's better to ask for forgiveness than permission. You get more done that way.
I started it and had 2 deputies, a Dodge/Jeep dealer owner, ex-SWAT, ex-EMT's, 4 Volunteer Sheriffs, a board member from the City of Lancaster and others who joined.
I talked with SAR who came to our first meeting. I got approval from a friend at Sheriff's Headquarters. By the time I went to my Lieutenant, it was too late and all he could do was approve. I'm a volunteer. What were they going to do, fire me? Now I'm unstopable.

Viperpilot611

Amen to that.

Our local CERT is run by professionals from the local fire station. So they are extremely reluctant to rock the boat in fear of being fired for something the volunteers did. I can't blame them for that. I am looking into other local SAR teams right now.