In addition to preparing our canine search teams for disasters, SDF also serves as a vital training ground for diverse emergency response teams, preparing them for real-life scenarios in a safe, controlled environment. The first few months of this year saw a flurry of activity with Nebraska Task Force 1, Colorado Task Force 1, San Diego Sheriff Search and Rescue, and the seven Los Angeles area fire departments that makeup California Regional Task Force 2 all benefiting from SDF’s unique facilities. Regional Task Force 2 held its annual Mobilization Exercise (MOBEX) through the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (CalOES) on the anniversary of the 1994 Northridge earthquake, with memories of the 6.7 shaker stressing the importance of collaboration as they trained for a large-scale, post-earthquake response.
But SDF isn’t limited to urban emergency exercises. The California Rescue Dog Association (CARDA) has found a regular home at SDF, utilizing the campus’s differing environments to train in a wide variety of search scenarios. These dedicated individuals and their canine partners travel from across the state to participate in training that helps hone their skills, build teamwork, and solve problems effectively in immersive real-world situations.
CARDA handlers, who are all volunteers, are frequently deployed by sheriff departments to search for missing persons, mainly in wilderness environments, and are trained in search disciplines that include wide-area search, trailing, and human remains detection. In December and January, 31 CARDA search teams trained over two weekend visits to SDF, utilizing most of our campus to conduct exercises for all three search disciplines simultaneously.
SDF’s own staff member, Jenn Mueller, is a pre-apprentice trailing handler with CARDA, and took part in the recent training with her dog, Mira. She said of the event, “The SDF training was an amazing opportunity for my dog and I to train with handlers from CARDA who we don’t have a chance to work with regularly. The NTC provides several really amazing props that we were able to use for our dogs that many handlers normally would not have access to. We set up some great trailing scenarios that ended inside one of the trains, which was so much fun! I am deeply grateful to SDF for providing these opportunities to the SAR community!”
With the success of these training sessions, we’re excited about future collaborations. Each training group’s investment in training means these organizations can effectively respond to emergencies when they’re needed most, and we’re honored to provide a safe, realistic environment for the search and rescue community whose dedication may someday save lives.
Watch the CalOES video on California Regional Task Force 2’s MOBEX on our campus here!