Author: Jeff Randall

There are training days and then there are training days. Every time our team trains with NC SAR personnel, it’s like a week’s worth of training rolled into a day. We’re never disappointed when we leave NC thinking it could have been better. Patient, highly-skilled professionals that don’t know the words “quit” or it “can’t be done.” No matter the difficulty, there’s not a grumble or complaint to be heard. In fact, it’s when nothing is going easy that they are at their best – smile on their face, embracing the suck. Training value means something to these guys. Our team feels very fortunate and honored to be able to train with such awesome folks.

RAT-SAR members from Georgia and Alabama participated in the successful search and rescue of this missing Murray county boy who was found safe on Halloween night.

Very proud of this team. Awesome group with service to their community as their top priority. Always a pleasure training with such professionals.

RAT-SAR team members spent the last couple of days training members of the Lafayette Parish Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue team in single rope rescue techniques. Louisiana’s Lafayette Parish SAR has 60 team members with a wide range of experience from search tactics to water and technical rescue. It’s an honor for RAT-SAR to be part of their training curriculum.

RAT-SAT team members assisted Etowah County EMA at the command post during ongoing operations resulting from a large warehouse fire in Attalla, AL. The warehouse contained compressed paper products requiring more than 150 firefighters and 60 departments to contain. RAT-SAR would like to thank all the departments, firemen, first responders, volunteers, and the Etowah County EMA for their continuing hard work and dedication to the citizens of Alabama.

A RAT-SAR team member recently assisted with a missing person rescue at Beaman Park north of Nashville, Tennessee. Wallace “Buzz” Carter, age 67, did not return to his vehicle after a hike that began around mid-day on Saturday, September 28. Rescue operations were conducted all day Sunday before being called at 6 p.m. Efforts continued on Monday morning, and RAT-SAR member Jason Lovvorn (photo above) went out in Monday’s first search group, sweeping terrain around a trail currently under construction. Around 10 a.m., the call came in that Carter had been found in good shape on nearby private land by a volunteer searching on an ATV. The entire RAT-SAR team is pleased that rescue efforts ended happily for Carter and his family.

The RAT-SAR team was back on the bluffs this past weekend training on raises and lowers at Bucks Pocket State Park. This was the first training event for some of our new members and concluded a two-weekend rope rescue operations class.

After spending four nights in the Smoky Mountains near the Cataloochee Trail, Kevin Lynch was found by search and rescue personnel, alert and responsive.  It was a true honor for RAT-SAR to work alongside many other professional agencies, ultimately leading to this very successful outcome. We can’t thank all the volunteers and agencies enough for their dedication, professionalism and hard work. This is what search and rescue is all about and why Randall’s Adventure & Training built a volunteer SAR team. Read the wrap-up article in The Mountaineer.

Here are a few pics of the RAT-SAR team during their 3 days of search missions on the Lynch search.

July, 2019 – Members of RAT-SAR participated in a 5-day Wilderness First Responder (WFR) certification course hosted by Randall’s Adventure & Training. Scenarios included everything from a mass casualty plane crash incident to common fractures often seen on hikers and backpackers.

Wilderness First Responders are individuals who are trained to respond to emergency situations in remote locations. They are part of a wide variety of wilderness medical providers who deal with medical emergencies that occur in wilderness settings.