Disasters can
be defined as events that cause serious disruptions in the
services that are essential for the normal operation of a
community(s) and frequently result in widespread human and
environmental losses. Such disruptions exceed the emergency
management capabilities of the affected community(s).
The catastrophic earthquakes that hit northern and southern
California in 1989 and 1994, and Kobe Japan, the events of
September 11, 2001 demonstrated and re-defined the need for
specially trained Heavy Urban Search and Rescue (HUSAR, USAR)
resources to respond to incidents of structural collapse caused by
natural or man made disasters.
Since then, this capability has been examined nationally
and found to be lacking in most areas of Canada
inclusive of
Manitoba
and the surrounding region.
What
is Urban Search and Rescue?
(USAR)
USAR,
as defined by the Office of Critical Infrastructure Protection and
Emergency Planning (OCIPEP), as: “The
location of trapped persons in collapsed structures using dogs and
sophisticated search equipment; the use of heavy equipment such as
cranes to remove debris; the work to breach, shore, remove and
lift structural components; the treatment and removal of victims;
and the securing of partially or completely collapsed structures.
USAR
is considered a multi-hazard discipline.
A USAR capable response may be needed for a wide variety
of emergencies or disasters, including but not limited to
earthquakes, winter and summer storms, tornadoes, building
collapse from snow load or other factors, flood dam failures,
technological accidents, terrorist activities and hazardous
material releases.
The
Manitoba USAR Project will act as a framework for structuring
existing emergency service personnel, including both Provincial
and Municipal Emergency Response into an integrated response Team.
This community based USAR Team takes advantage of the
pre-existing organizations that support them.
The emergency service personnel who perform this work on a
daily basis will be further trained in many related fields of
rescue - giving them the ability to function as a unique and
independent Team if necessary.
Manitoba
Emergency Services College Codes
& Standards Investigations
Municipal Support
Emergency Response Administration
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