Getting Organized

After completing the swift water rescue training course, a lot of work needed to be completed to put the training into effect. First, the rangers needed to acquire the equipment needed to safely perform these rescues, and, second and third, that equipment needed to be inventoried and distributed to the rangers. In the beginning of my third week at Mammoth Cave, I helped with these efforts, sorting and cataloging new rescue gear including PFD’s (personal flotation devices, life jackets,) wet suits, ropes, carabiners, as well as more specialized equipment such as a line throwing system.

A new fire extinguisher and rope cleats

I also got to help work on the new patrol boat, installing rope cleats on the hull and mounting a fire extinguisher onboard.

inside the SAR trailer

The most time intensive project of the week, however, was inventorying the contents of the park’s search and rescue (SAR) trailer. Nearly everything that the rangers might need for a search and rescue, including litters, backboards, high angle rescue equipment, swift water rescue gear, and even equipment needed to transport a patient by helicopter, is kept loaded in the SAR trailer so that it may be accessible in an emergency at a moment’s notice.

Inventory on the SAR
Trailer

I went through all of the trailer’s contents and created an inventory of everything onboard, recording each item’s description, issue date, quantity, and location. As I sorted through all of the ropes, harnesses, climbing systems, and other gear, I learned a lot about search and rescue equipment, and more importantly, I made a system that might make it easier to organize everything or find a piece of equipment during an emergency.


In the middle of the inventory, I got to ride along with Ranger Clemons as he investigated a call that marijuana had been found in the Visitor’s Center. Just to prove the expression that when it rains, it pours, immediately after concluding the investigation, the skies opened up, and the downpour caused several problems. Due to the heavy rain, a tree fell and blocked a road outside of the park, while another fell onto one of the Green River Ferry’s cables, rendering it unsafe to operate. While trail crews began to clear the fallen tree from the cable, we learned that there were a number of visitors out on the water in canoes and kayaks when the storm hit. The Green River turned brown due to all of the top load, and the current became noticeably faster. We found out that the boaters were late, and should have already made it down to the ferry.

Preparing for a search and rescue on the river

As we waited for the visitors to float down the river, we readied the boat for a search and rescue operation gear in the event that any boaters were missing. Thankfully by the time we returned to the ferry and prepared to launch, the first group of kayakers arrived, soaking wet, but safe.