Search and rescue in the United States involves a wide range of organizations that have

search and rescue Search and rescue (SAR) is the search for and provision of aid to people who are in distress or imminent danger. The general field of search and rescue includes many specialty sub-fields, typically determined by the type of terrain the search ...

responsibilities. In January 2008, the

United States Department of Homeland Security The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is the Federal government of the United States, U.S. United States federal executive departments, federal executive department responsible for public security, roughly comparable to the I ...

(DHS) released the

National Response Framework The United States National Response Framework (NRF) is part of the National Strategy for Homeland Security that presents the guiding principles enabling all levels of domestic response partners to prepare for and provide a unified national respons ...

(NRF) which serves as the guiding document for a federal response during a national emergency. In addition to the NRF there are 15 annexes relating to Emergency Support Functions (ESF) which includes other federal agencies that contain resources or expertise to support an emergency. Search and Rescue is included as ESF-9 and divides SAR into four primary elements while assigning a federal agency with the lead role for each of the four elements. * Structural Collapse-USAR:

Department of Homeland Security The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is the U.S. federal executive department responsible for public security, roughly comparable to the interior or home ministries of other countries. Its stated missions involve anti-terr ...

Federal Emergency Management Agency The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is an agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS), initially created under President Jimmy Carter by Presidential Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1978 and implemented by two Exec ...

* Waterborne:

United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, mult ...

United States Coast Guard Auxiliary The United States Coast Guard Auxiliary (USCGA, USCGAUX, CGAux, or USCG Aux) is the civilian uniformed volunteer component of the United States Coast Guard. Congress established the unit on 23 June 1939, as the United States Coast Guard Reserve ...

* Inland-wilderness:

United States Department of Interior The United States Department of the Interior (DOI) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government headquartered at the Main Interior Building, located at 1849 C Street NW in Washington, D.C. It is responsible for the man ...

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propertie ...

* Aeronautical:

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...

Rescue Coordination Center,

Civil Air Patrol Civil Air Patrol (CAP) is a congressionally chartered, federally supported non-profit corporation that serves as the official civilian auxiliary of the United States Air Force (USAF). CAP is a volunteer organization with an aviation-minded mem ...

Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Service,

US Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage of ...

(secondary missions for helicopter squadrons) In the U.S., SAR standards are developed primarily by

ASTM International ASTM International, formerly known as American Society for Testing and Materials, is an international standards organization that develops and publishes voluntary consensus technical standards for a wide range of materials, products, systems, ...

and the

National Fire Protection Association The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) is an international nonprofit organization devoted to eliminating death, injury, property and economic loss due to fire, electrical and related hazards. As of 2018, the NFPA claims to have 50,000 mem ...

(NFPA) which are then used by organizations such as the Mountain Rescue Association (MRA), the National Association of Search and Rescue (NASAR), and the NFPA to develop training that will meet or exceed those standards. Within ASTM International, most standards of relevance to SAR are developed by Committee F32 on Search and Rescue. Formed in 1988, the committee had 85 current members and jurisdiction of 38 approved standards.

National organizations

Explorer Search and Rescue Explorer Search and Rescue (ESAR) are teams of Explorers in the Learning for Life program of the Boy Scouts of America who are trained and deployed for search and rescue missions. Well-developed ESAR programs emerged in the state of Washington in ...

* Mountain Rescue Association *

National Association for Search and Rescue The National Association for Search and Rescue (NASAR) has been in existence since 1972. Originally started to represent the State Search and Rescue Coordinators, NASAR grew to represent all SAR volunteers and continues to support the State Search ...

National Association of Volunteer Search and Rescue Teams National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, c ...

*United States Search And Rescue Task Force

State organizations

;Alabama *

Alabama Association of Rescue Squads (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County , LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham , area_total_km2 = 135,765 ...

*Alabama Search and Rescue *

Red Mountain Search Dog Association Red is the color at the long wavelength end of the visible spectrum of light, next to orange and opposite violet. It has a dominant wavelength of approximately 625–740 nanometres. It is a primary color in the RGB color model and a secondar ...

;California *

San Luis Obispo County Search and Rescue San Luis Obispo County Sheriff Search and Rescue is an all-volunteer organization in San Luis Obispo County within the county's Sheriff's office. With approximately fifty active members year round, San Luis Obispo County's Search and Rescue (SLOS ...

Bay Area Search and Rescue Council A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a gulf, sea, sound, or bight. A cove is a small, circular bay with a nar ...

Marin County Sheriff's Office Search & Rescue Marin County Search and Rescue is an all-volunteer organization in Marin County within Marin County Sheriff's Office. With approximately sixty active members, Marin County's Search and Rescue (Marin SAR) responds to searches for missing children ...

* San Mateo County Search and Rescue *

Long Beach Search & Rescue Long Beach Search and Rescue is a specialist Explorer post of the Learning for Life program with the Boy Scouts of America. It is an urban search and rescue unit based out of Long Beach, California, and is sponsored by the Long Beach Police Motor ...

San Diego Mountain Rescue Team The San Diego Mountain Rescue Team (SDMRT) is an all-volunteer organization located in San Diego County, California operating under the jurisdiction of the San Diego County Sheriff's Department. With approximately seventy active members, SDMRT resp ...

* Montrose Search and Rescue Team * Altadena Mountain Rescue Team * Sierra Madre Search and Rescue Team * Antelope Valley Search and Rescue * Malibu Search and Rescue Team *

Santa Clarita Valley Search and Rescue Team Santa Claus, also known as Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Kris Kringle, or simply Santa, is a Legend, legendary figure originating in Western Christianity, Western Christian culture who is said to Christmas gift-bringer, bring ...

* San Dimas Mountain Rescue Team ;Colorado * Arapahoe Rescue Patrol *

Rampart Search and Rescue Rampart Search and Rescue (RSAR) serves the communities within Adams County, Colorado. Its name is derived from the '70's TV show ''Emergency!'' where Rampart was the name of the hospital. Rampart search and rescue has been in operation since 1973. ...

* Mesa County Search and Rescue ;Florida *

Brothers to the Rescue Brothers to the Rescue ( es, Hermanos al Rescate) is a Miami-based activist nonprofit organization headed by José Basulto. Formed by Cuban exiles, the group is widely known for its opposition to the Cuban government and its former leader Fidel Ca ...

;Maryland *

Maryland Department of Natural Resources Police The Maryland Natural Resources Police (NRP) is the law enforcement arm of the Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR), tasked with enforcing laws on the state's public lands and waterways, protecting fish and wildlife, and leading search ...

;Michigan * Michigan Search and Rescue * K-9 ONE Search and Rescue ;Missouri * Urban Search and Rescue Missouri Task Force 1 ;New Jersey * Urban Search and Rescue New Jersey Task Force 1 * New Jersey Search and Rescue ;New Mexico *

New Mexico Search and Rescue Council New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...

;New York *

Urban Search and Rescue New York Task Force 1 NYC Urban Search & Rescue Task Force or also known by its Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) designation of NY-TF1 is a FEMA Urban Search and Rescue Task Force based in New York City, New York. NY-TF1 is managed by the NYC Office of Emerge ...

Westchester County Technical Rescue Team Westchester most commonly refers to Westchester County, New York, immediately north of New York City. __NOTOC__ It may also refer to: Geography Canada * Westchester Station, Nova Scotia, Canada United States *Town of Westchester, the original seat ...

* New York Search And Rescue - Serving the Lower Hudson Valley * Long Island Search and Rescue - Primarily serving Suffolk and Nassau Counties *

New York State Federation of Search and Rescue Teams New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz (South Korean band), The Boyz Albums and EPs * New (album), ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartn ...

- Statewide listing of SAR teams *

Lower Adirondack Search and Rescue Lower may refer to: *Lower (surname) *Lower Township, New Jersey *Lower Receiver (firearms) *Lower Wick Gloucestershire, England See also *Nizhny Nizhny (russian: Ни́жний; masculine), Nizhnyaya (; feminine), or Nizhneye (russian: Ни́� ...

- Serving all of New York State - Primarily the Adirondack Region wilderness ;North Carolina * NCCERT (North Carolina Canine Emergency Response Team) ;Ohio *

Rapid Assistance to Community Emergencies - Search and Rescue Rapids are sections of a river where the river bed has a relatively steep gradient, causing an increase in water velocity and turbulence. Rapids are hydrological features between a ''run'' (a smoothly flowing part of a stream) and a ''cascade'' ...

;Oregon *

Multnomah County Sheriff's Office Search and Rescue Multnomah County Sheriff's Office Search and Rescue (MCSO SAR) is a non-profit volunteer search and rescue resource for the Multnomah County Sheriff's Office in Multnomah County, Oregon, United States. The agency also offers its 3,000-5,000 hou ...

*North Oregon Regional Search and Rescue *

Portland Mountain Rescue Portland Mountain Rescue is a search and rescue organization based in Portland, Oregon, United States. It specializes in high angle mountain rescue and mountain rescue in northwest Oregon and southwest Washington, as well as providing educational ...

;Pennsylvania *

East Penn Search and Rescue East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sunrise, Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from ...

;Virginia Virginia benefits from a state-coordinated system of training and response under the

Virginia Department of Emergency Management Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern United States, Southeastern regions of the United States, between the East Coast of the United Stat ...

(VDEM). Under Title 44 of the Code of Virginia, VDEM develops and maintains the

Commonwealth of Virginia Emergency Operations Plan A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with "republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the ...

(COVEOP) that includes the ESF-9 Annex for Search and Rescue. Similar to the federal version of ESF-9 under the

(NRF), VDEM divides SAR into four primary elements. While VDEM functions as the lead for ESF-9, many agencies, departments, and volunteer organizations routinely responds to and supports SAR operations in the Commonwealth of Virginia. ;Washington *

Washington State Search and Rescue Volunteer Advisory Council Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

Jefferson County Search and Rescue Jefferson may refer to: Names * Jefferson (surname) * Jefferson (given name) People * Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826), third president of the United States * Jefferson (footballer, born 1970) Jefferson Tomaz de Souza (born 22 November 1970) ...

King County Search and Rescue Association King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen regnant, queen, which title is also given to the queen consort, consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contempora ...

Seattle Mountain Rescue Seattle Mountain Rescue (SMR) is an all volunteer non-profit mountain rescue team operating out of King County, Washington. SMR is part of the King County Search & Rescue Association (KCSARA) and is also part of the Mountain Rescue Association, ...

* Snohomish County Volunteer Search and Rescue * Spokane County Search and Rescue *

Pierce County Search and Rescue Council Pierce may refer to: Places Canada * Pierce Range, a mountain range on Vancouver Island, British Columbia United States * Pierce, Colorado * Pierce, Idaho * Pierce, Illinois * Pierce, Kentucky * Pierce, Nebraska * Pierce, Texas * Pierce, West ...

* Washington Air Search and Rescue

Aeronautical

Search and rescue services for downed, missing, or overdue aircraft and

Emergency Locator Transmitter An Emergency Position-Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB) is a type of emergency locator beacon for commercial and recreational boats, a portable, battery-powered radio transmitter used in emergencies to locate boaters in distress and in need of ...

s (ELTs). Organizations include: *

Virginia State Police The Virginia State Police, officially the Virginia Department of State Police, conceived in 1919 and established in 1932, is the state police force for the U.S. state of Virginia. The agency originated out of the Virginia Department of Motor Vehi ...

, Aviation Division

Inland/Wilderness

For search and rescue of lost and missing persons in a wide variety of circumstances and environments, resources include: * Amherst County Search and Rescue *

Appalachian Professional Tracking Group Appalachian may refer to: * Appalachian Mountains, a major mountain range in eastern United States and Canada * Appalachian Trail, a hiking trail in the eastern United States * The people of Appalachia and their culture ** Appalachian Americans, e ...

Appalachian Search and Rescue Conference Appalachian may refer to: * Appalachian Mountains, a major mountain range in eastern United States and Canada * Appalachian Trail, a hiking trail in the eastern United States * The people of Appalachia and their culture ** Appalachian Americans, e ...

Black Diamond Search and Rescue Council Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white have ...

* Blue and Gray Search and Rescue Dogs * Blue Ridge Mountain Rescue Group * DOGS-East Search and Rescue * Greater Atlantic Rescue Dogs *

Jefferson County Search Dog Association Jefferson may refer to: Names * Jefferson (surname) * Jefferson (given name) People * Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826), third president of the United States * Jefferson (footballer, born 1970), full name Jefferson Tomaz de Souza, Brazilian footb ...

* K-9 Alert Search and Rescue * Piedmont Search and Rescue *

Search and Rescue Dogs of Maryland Searching or search may refer to: Computing technology * Search algorithm, including keyword search ** :Search algorithms * Search and optimization for problem solving in artificial intelligence * Search engine technology, software for finding ...

Southwest Virginia Mountain Rescue Group The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sepa ...

* Tidewater Search and Rescue

Maritime/Waterborne

Providing search and rescue for vessels in distress in coastal and inland waters, resources include: *

Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries The Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources is a department of the government of the U.S. state of Virginia that regulates wildlife conservation. History The Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries was created on June 17, 1916, under the ...

Virginia Marine Resources Commission The Virginia Marine Resources Commission is a state agency charged with overseeing Virginia's marine and aquatic resources, and its tidal waters and homelands. One of the primary functions of the Commission is to zone water areas for outdoor swi ...

* Smith Point Volunteer Sea Rescue * Eckerd College Search and Rescue

USAR/Disaster

To provide response in the event of collapsed structures and significant events, organizations include: * Maryland Task Force 1 * Virginia Task Force 1 * Virginia Task Force 2

References

External links

{{Commons category, Search and rescue in the United States
National Association for Search and Rescue
Rescue Emergency services in the United States