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nonot wrote:It's black and gold and says SHERIFF in 2 foot high letters, I didn't see his actual name on it, but it could be there?

Billing for Searches and Rescues Endangers the Public and Rescuers
Posted Monday - July 13th, 2009
For further information:
Howard M. Paul, Denver
(303) 829-5678 (MDT)
hmpaul@ecentral.com

The following is the press release regarding NASAR's position on billing for SAR:

Washington, DC April 30, 2009 The National Association for Search and Rescue has joined the Mountain Rescue Association, the Colorado Search and Rescue Board, the International Association of Dive Rescue Specialists, the United States Coast Guard and the National Park Service – all of which either oppose billing, or do not bill, people after a search and rescue (SAR) operation. “Although it remains a local decision, billing for search and rescue operations is a dangerous practice that should be avoided,” said NASAR President Dan Hourihan.

NASAR takes the position, “To eliminate the fear of being unable to pay for having one’s life saved, SAR services should be rendered to persons in danger or distress without subsequent cost-recovery from the person(s) assisted unless prior arrangements have been made. The mission of SAR organizations is to save lives, not just the lives of those who can afford to pay the bill. As such, methods and means should be developed and used that diffuse the cost of humanitarian SAR operations among the many, allowing anyone to reasonably expect emergency aid without regard to their circumstances.”

The idea of not billing for SAR services confuses many people. However, SAR professionals across the nation know of many instances in which someone – after an unforeseen accident, or spending hours searching for their missing companion – delayed calling for help. Each “remembered” hearing, seeing or reading, “somewhere” that rescues and searches cost “thousands of dollars – which they could not afford. Some have even chosen not to call for help, or refused emergency help.

In 2006, a young hiker became stranded on Colorado’s 14,270’ Quandary Peak. She called 9-1-1, but asked the SAR team leader just to “talk her out of the area.” The sun had already set and cold weather surrounded her in a dangerous area of the mountain. She repeatedly said the SAR team should not come to help her. After going back and forth with her on her cell phone, the SAR team leader finally asked why she didn't want help. She replied, “I can't afford it.” He explained that there would be no charge and she then relented.

“A delay can place SAR personnel in danger and can unnecessarily compound and lengthen a SAR mission,” said Hourihan. “Not calling for emergency SAR help could be as catastrophic as not calling the fire department when a small stove-top fire jumps to the ceiling and instantly fills the kitchen with flames, because the home owner’s first thought was ‘how in the world will I pay the fire department?’”

Then-U.S.C.G. Commandant James Loy explained it best, in 1999, in the Coast Guard’s very similar position. “If the specter of financial reimbursement hung over the decision to report maritime distress, we could get fewer calls, we would get calls during later stages of emergencies, and more people would die at sea. This factor alone outweighs any consideration of how much money we might recoup,” said Admiral Loy.
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Founded in 1973, the National Association for Search and Rescue comprises more than 10,000 volunteer and paid search and rescue professionals who work at the local, state and national level in land, aviation and water SAR. NASAR conducts hundreds of training courses and thousands of certification exams each year. More than 11,000 people hold any of 11 NASAR certifications in SAR operations.

Hikers rescued for free in Arizona

20 comments by Ron Dungan - Nov. 21, 2009 12:00 AM
The Arizona Republic

In Tucson, a trail runner got lost, then tried to hide while searchers looked for him in the night.

In Washington, a woman tried to walk down a mountain on a broken leg.

They feared that being rescued would cost them thousands of dollars.

In New Hampshire recently, a hiker with a sprained ankle was evacuated and later handed a bill for more than $25,000.

These cases and others like them may be sending the wrong message to hikers nationwide, but Arizona search-and-rescue teams have a more important message: They do not charge for rescues. Most states don't.

"I firmly believe that search and rescue should be free," said David Bremson of the Central Arizona Mountain Rescue Association, which handles calls from the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office. "If you asked anyone involved with mountain rescue or search and rescue, they'd agree."

Rescue workers are familiar with the outdoors and the role that changing weather, bad luck and unforeseen circumstances can play in the backcountry.

They have seen their share of misfortune and are not as quick to judge people as others might be.

Delays in seeking help can put hikers and rescuers at greater risk. The sooner a rescue starts, the better.

"Bad things happen to good people," Bremson said. "That's why they're called accidents and not on-purposes."

How rescues happen

Most search-and-rescue teams are staffed by volunteers. The volunteers are hikers, climbers, outdoors enthusiasts with a wide range of skills, men and women who devote hours to training and some of their own money to buy supplies.

These teams typically are coordinated by the local sheriff's office, which takes calls about lost or stranded hikers. This is true nationwide, with a handful of exceptions.

New Hampshire adjusted its laws last year to allow the state to charge for rescues of hikers deemed to be negligent.

Rescues usually happen quickly. Searches can take longer. Some operations are technical, even dangerous. Most never make the papers.

"We're invisible," Bremson said. "People don't really see what goes on out there."

Every now and then, however, the media pick up a story about stranded mountain climbers or a missing hiker. Some people suggest hikers ought to pay for their rescues if they took undue risks.

"There are those among the public, who do not spend time in the backcountry, that tend to look at those who do as kind of thrill-seekers," said Charley Shimanski of the Mountain Rescue Association, a coalition of 90 mountain-rescue teams in North America. "So, there's some percentage, a vocal minority, who feel that they as a taxpayer shouldn't have to foot the bill."

But searchers say that those in need are no different from a car-accident victim or a homeowner in a house fire.

"We don't charge people extra to extract them from a crumpled vehicle because they were drunk or they made a mistake," said Tim Kovacs, a rescue worker with the Phoenix Fire Department.

That's not to say that hikers won't have medical bills or face consequences.

After being rescued, a hiker may be charged for an ambulance, helicopter transportation, doctor's services and other medical costs.

That would be just as true for someone involved in a car accident or who fell and hit his head at the mall. The job of a search-and-rescue team is to get a person out of the backcountry and closer to medical care.

In extreme cases, people who are rescued can be cited for negligence. People who drive around barricades to cross flooded washes can be prosecuted under the Stupid Motorist Law, for instance.

What it costs

Although search-and-rescue volunteers don't charge for their services, there are other costs involved in a rescue. A helicopter search can cost hundreds, even thousands, of dollars an hour.

There may be overtime for sheriff's deputies. How these costs are covered depends on a variety of factors.

The National Park Service includes rescue charges in user fees, and it has calculated that rescues cost less than one penny per visitor per year, Bremson said. Colorado adds a small charge to hunting, fishing, ATV and snowmobile licenses.

In Arizona, the state helps counties recover the cost of rescues through the Governor's Emergency Fund.

The fund, financed with tax dollars, was established to help counties cope with emergencies such as fires, floods, hazardous materials, even flu outbreaks.

The fund is about $4 million a year, said James Langston of the Arizona Division of Emergency Management's search-and-rescue unit. Of that, about $200,000 is authorized to reimburse counties for the 600 or so search-and-rescue operations that take place each year.

The fund helped with one of last year's largest rescue missions, the evacuation of Havasu Canyon on the Havasupai Reservation by the Grand Canyon.

On Aug. 16-17, 2008, monsoon storms created flash floods that ravaged the scenic canyon. About 250 hikers were in the campground when the floodwater swept through. The state's cost to evacuate several hundred tourists and tribal members came to about $170,000. But no lives were lost.

The easy out

Bremson and others worry about the number of people who go into the wilderness without a map, enough water or adequate knowledge of what they're doing.

"It's becoming more commonplace to carry a cellphone instead of another quart of water or to carry a cellphone instead of a flashlight," said Rick Kunz of the Southern Arizona Rescue Association.

Some hikers assume they can call for help if they get into trouble, rather than making adequate preparations.

Bremson said new GPS-messenger devices add to that problem. The handheld units use satellite-based navigation and messaging services and can send automatic distress calls. People buy the devices and subscribe to the locating service, and they intend to use it, he said.

"We're seeing this easy-button mentality," he said.

No price tag

A pair of hikers considered the value of a rescue as they prepared for a hike at South Mountain Park in Phoenix recently.

"You shouldn't have to put a price tag on your own life," said Matt Dowd, 35, of Scottsdale.

He and his friend, Pete Prough, 41, of Queen Creek, have hiked Arizona for about five years. They are aware that snakes strike, people run out of water, trails can unravel, directions blur.

They have been lost for a bit but never had to be rescued, and they have learned through experience.

They know that hiking with a friend is a good idea. They usually carry a map. They said that charging thousands of dollars for a rescue is excessive.

"I think that's kind of wrong," Prough said. "But a lot of people do go out unprepared . . . because they don't know what they're dealing with."

Unprepared hikers can test the patience of their rescuers. Still, a flooded canyon and a broken ankle aren't anybody's fault, said Kunz, and hikers should be saved.

"There are enough volunteers that are happy to go look for them. It's easy out there to sort of lose track of time," he said. "That's why they go hiking. Should people be charged for that? No."