Avalanche rescue
They are employed in areas where avalanches pose a significant threat to people, such as ski resorts and mountain towns, roads and railways.
Even in a well equipped country such as France, it typically takes 45 minutes for a helicopter rescue team to arrive, by which time most of the victims are likely to have died.
In some cases avalanche victims are not located until spring thaw melts the snow, or even years later when objects emerge from a glacier.
Chances of a buried victim being found alive and rescued are increased when everyone in a group is carrying and using standard avalanche equipment, and have trained in how to use it.
Rescue equipment can make a difference, and in 2010 the French National Association for the Study of Snow and Avalanches (ANENA) recommended that all off-piste skiers should carry beacons, probes, shovels, and Recco reflectors.
The use of avalanche cords goes back to the early 20th century and a Bavarian mountaineer named Eugen Oertel.
In the United States the concept was recommended as early as 1908 in the Colorado newspaper - the Ouray Herald (November 13) - when the editor repeated the suggestion that miners in the San Juan Mountains adopt "snowslide ribbons" to safeguard their travels to and from the mines.
Commercial avalanche cords have metal markings every one to three metres indicating the direction and length to the victim.
They emit a "beep" via 457 kHz radio signal in normal use, but may be switched to receive mode to locate a buried victim up to 80 meters away.
Some older models of beepers operated on a different frequency (2.275 kHz ) and a group leader should ensure these are no longer in use.
Since about 2000 nearly all avalanche rescue transceivers use digital displays to give visual indications of direction and distance to victims.
When multiple victims are buried, probes should be used to decide the order of rescue, with the shallowest being dug out first since they have the greatest chance of survival.
[6] Shovels are also useful for digging snow pits as part of evaluating the snowpack for hidden hazards, such as weak layers supporting large loads.
The detector receives a directional signal that is reflected back from a small, passive, transponder called a reflector that is included into outerwear, boots, helmets, and body protection.
The device consists of a mouth piece, a flap valve, an exhaust pipe, and an air collector.
The Avalung ameliorates this situation by drawing breath over a large surface area in front and pushing the warm exhaled carbon dioxide behind.
With freeriding becoming more popular in recent years, avalanche airbags have become (relatively) commonly used equipment, with one German producer reporting over 20,000 sales in the 2012/13 winter season.
[9] One complication is that the small explosives or compressed air canisters that deploy the airbag might need to be emptied or expended in order to fly on a commercial airplane.
[10] In 2014, one company introduced an airbag system that uses a battery-powered fan to inflate its 200-litre (7.1 cu ft) bag in around 3.5 seconds.
The manufacturer claims a number of other advantages for the system, such as the ability to easily and repeatedly test it, the ability of a continuously operating fan to keep the airbag inflated even if it receives a puncture or small tear and the fact that the bag can be easily deflated and repacked, making the system available for a second deployment if needed.
[11] More backcountry adventurers are also carrying Satellite Electronic Notification Devices (SEND) to quickly alert rescuers to a problem.
The International Commission for Alpine Rescue recommends, “early notification is essential, e.g., by mobile phone, satellite phone, or radio, wherever possible” [12] Other rescue devices are proposed, developed and used, such as avalanche balls, vests and airbags, based on statistics indicating that decreasing the depth of burial increases the chances of survival.
A first aid kit and equipment is useful for assisting survivors who may have cuts, broken bones, or other injuries, in addition to hypothermia.
In case of organized rescue, the first teams travel fast and light to locate and uncover buried victims.
Upon the first alert of an avalanche incident the rescue leader will appoint a team to arrange transportation for both rescuers and patients.
Every incident is different depending upon the number of victims, avalanche danger, weather conditions, terrain, access, availability of rescuers, etc.
In the United States all agencies are mandated to manage search and rescue operations, including avalanche, under the Incident Command System (ICS).
