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AFRCC helps save three lives

  • Published
  • By 1st Lt. Jared Scott
  • 601st AOC PA
TYNDALL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. --  The Air Force Rescue Coordination Center here helped coordinate three separate search and rescue operations in Utah, Washington and Colorado Wednesday, with local and state agencies saving the lives of three American citizens.

The Beaver County Sheriff and Utah Department of Safety contacted the AFRCC to ask for federal assistance to search for a missing man who had gone prospecting in the Frisco Mountains, 180 miles Southwest of Salt Lake City. The AFRCC responded by coordinating with the Utah Civil Air Patrol to search for the individuals vehicle.

The Civil Air Patrol spotted the vehicle near Frisco Peak and directed the Beaver County Sheriff's Office to the scene where the prospector was recovered.

He was listed in good condition with minor injuries and transported to a local hospital.

"Had the Civil Air Patrol not be involved, this mission could have taken much longer, since his location was difficult to observe from the ground," said Corporal Vincent Cox, Beaver County Sheriff's Office deputy. "CAP's ability to search the area and spot the man's vehicle saved his life."

"On any given day the AFRCC may be coordinating several search and rescue operations at once," said Lt. Col. Clifton Hicks, AFRCC director of operations. "I have some of the sharpest SAR coordinators the military has to offer and this job, days like yesterday, couldn't get done without them."

CAP performs 90 percent of continental U.S. inland search and rescue missions as tasked by the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center and was credited by the AFRCC with saving 91 lives in fiscal year 2008.

In a separate incident, a young man fell in a rocky beach area at Olympia National Park in Washington State. The Olympia National Park Emergency Operations Center contacted the AFRCC to request airlift for the individual. The AFRCC contacted the District 13 Coast Guard who launched a HH-65A helicopter out of Group/Air Station Port Angeles, Wash. Due to the mountainous terrain, the helicopter could not land and had to hoist the individual out of the area and transport him to a local hospital.

The young man was listed in serious condition with a head injury and a broken wrist.

And on the same day and nearly the same time, the Colorado Search and Rescue Board contacted the AFRCC to ask for federal assistance to rescue a hiker who had fallen approximately 1,500 feet near Crestone, Colo. The hiker was descending Kit Carson Peak when he lost his footing, according to the Denver Post. The AFRCC responded by coordinating with the Colorado Army National Guard who launched a CH-47 helicopter from Buckley Air Force Base, Colo. Using night vision goggles, the helicopter crew rescued the individual and transported him to a local hospital for further medical treatment.

The man was listed in critical condition with a head injury and broken arm.

As the United States' inland search and rescue coordinator, the AFRCC serves as the single agency responsible for coordinating federal SAR activities in the 48 contiguous United States.

The AFRCC, a unit under Air Forces Northern, operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The center directly ties in to the FAA's alerting system and the U.S. Mission Control Center. In addition to Search and Rescue Satellite Aided Tracking information, the AFRCC computer system contains resource files that list federal and state organizations which can conduct or assist in SAR efforts throughout North America.

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