Inland Water Rescue (SRT)

Operations in ‘swift water’, and in general operations in inland water, are referred to as ‘SRT*’ tasks and include life-saving rescue. However, due to the time-sensitive nature of water incidents these are often search operations, and many become recovery rather than rescue operations. Their initiation is often by a combination of Police, Fire Service or Coastguard.

SARA also responds to flooding, locally and nationally. SARA has 6 declared flood rescue teams on the National Asset Register (2 x Type B and 4 x Type C Teams) , notionally one at each of the 6 Stations, and they are ready for deployment anywhere in the country. DEFRA, through the National DEFRA Flood Rescue group coordinate Flood Response Team deployments nationally. SARA has a proven track record of deploying around the UK on such incidents including Essex (2014), Devon (2014) and Yorkshire (2015/16).

Dependent on the water concerned, a small boat may be deployed, or a floating platform, in addition to crew directly in shallow water. SARA has the ability to launch such small boats in almost all rivers, with no requirement for slipway or road access to the riverbank. Such small boats are referred to as ‘Rescue’ boats; SARA prefers rigid rescue boats to reduce the risk of punctures from the use of inflatables.

SARA Swift Water crew are qualified as ‘Swift Water and Flood Rescue Technicians’ (‘SRTs’ or ‘DEFRA Mod 3s’), which is the national standard; some are additionally qualified as Swiftwater & Flood Rescue Boat Operators (‘SFRBOs’ or ‘DEFRA Mod 4s’). SARA has in-house rescue instructors for these qualifications.

*In SARA, and in general within Mountain Rescue, the term ‘SRT’ refers to the disciplines described above. This is distinct from ‘Single Rope Technique’, as used in caving for example.

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