Background

Caves are unique environments containing features that may be both sensitive and hazardous to visitors. For the conservation of the caves and for personal safety, cavers require specialized knowledge and equipment, and these are best obtained through involvement with the organized caving community – the Alberta Speleological Society (ASS) in Alberta and the BC Speleological Federation (BCSF) in BC. Caving accidents occur infrequently and many can be handled by the cavers involved, especially if they are well prepared. Rescues can be extremely serious and complex owing to the difficulty of finding a missing individual in an extensive cave system or extricating an injured person through numerous underground obstacles. For example, of the 46 incidents recorded between 1973 and 2009: 9 were inconsequential 11 involved companion rescues without injuries 16 involved injuries but were achieved by companions Of the 10 rescues requiring outside response: 6 involved no injury 2 had injuries 2 became body recoveries Cave rescue is by cavers, for everyone. Unique amongst outdoor recreational pursuits in Western Canada, organized cavers have assumed delegated responsibility for Search & Rescue for anyone involved in the activity. This is partly because only cavers have the necessary knowledge, experience and equipment to conduct SAR in challenging but sensitive cave environments. It also demonstrates that organized cavers take safety seriously and can be trusted to pursue their interests with minimal external regulation. The Alberta/BC Cave Rescue Service takes pride in the fact that, unique among SAR groups, it has been funded since its inception almost entirely by the community it serves, through training registration fees, donations from individual cavers, and contributions from the BCSF Glenn Peppard/Rick Blak Memorial Fund and the VICEG Rennie/Clark Memorial Fund. It has also received support from the Wildlands Rescue Society, Petzl (North America) and Lance Amos. Though expenses of formal callouts have been reimbursed by the governments of British Columbia and Alberta, only recently have additional government funds become available for training and equipment. ABCCRS coordinates and provides cave rescue training and response in Alberta and British Columbia through two parallel organizations formally recognized as SAR groups in their respective provinces. BC Cave Rescue (BCCR), was initially organized informally within the BC caving and SAR communities in 1984. From 1994 until 2019, coordinated by a small committee, it formally operated as the rescue and training service of the British Columbia Speleological Federation, the registered society representing organized caving in British Columbia. Since 2019, to fit the template for other provincial SAR groups, it has functioned as a separate, registered provincial society with an elected board of directors, making it eligible for ongoing provincial funding support beyond simple task reimbursements. Under a 1992 MOU, BCCR is recognized by the Province of BC as the lead organization in cave rescue, providing specialized personnel and equipment for cave rescue emergencies on callout by the RCMP, BC Ambulance or the EMBC Emergency Coordination Centre (ECC). The Alberta Cave Rescue Organization (ACRO), is a registered society formed in 2001 by cavers and members of Alberta SAR groups. With most of its membership overlapping that of the Alberta Speleological Society, ACRO is administered by a three to five member elected board of directors. ACRO and BCCR have always been closely associated, training together since 2001 and adopting a common logo in 2011. Under the terms of a 2015 MOU, the two organizations formally share a common membership list, logo, public name (ABCCRS), and policies and procedures. Provincial Coordinators head up each society and have both administrative and operational responsibilities. They are supported administratively by their society directors and operationally by Regional Coordinators with cave SAR experience and local knowledge of the caves and cavers in their various regions of the two provinces. The SAR app D4H is used to track administration, operations, personnel and equipment. ABCCRS training is delivered annually at various locations in BC and Alberta. * One to two day Companion Rescue Workshops encourage every caver to build situational awareness, assess risks, carry appropriate equipment and develop horizontal and vertical techniques that will both improve everyday caving and assist them in responding effectively to emergencies impacting members of their party. * Rescue Response Workshops of similar duration, or Seminars of greater length serve to build and maintain a cadre of competent and appropriately equipped personnel available on callout by agencies anywhere in either province to respond to a cave search or rescue emergency. Participants are introduced to the use of the Incident Command System (ICS), communications equipment and protocols, cave search methods, stretcher packaging and handling, and rescue rigging. More than 600 individuals have received such training since 1987. ABCCRS personnel use internationally recognized cave rescue equipment and techniques and operate on formal tasks with support from Ground SAR groups under the relevant provincial protocols. Specialized cave rescue equipment caches are maintained at various locations in BC and Alberta. ABCCRS is capable of responding upon request to cave rescue emergencies anywhere in Western Canada, the Northwestern United States and Alaska.