VIDEO: A peek inside helicopter training with Juan de Fuca Search and Rescue

Volunteers with Juan de Fuca SAR gathered at Jordan River for helicopter boarding and deboarding training on a foggy Saturday morning. The mandatory annual exercise is conducted every year with West Coast Helicopter, a key partner in both tasks and training. Training included landing zones and contingency planning for fog. Teams of five took turns approaching the hovering helicopter, boarding, buckling in, and reversing. New recruits did a three-peat while annual recertification was one-and-done. The group boasts a dozen new members this year, selected from 100 applicants; new recruits trained two or three times a week and completed an overnight survival camp. Michelle Holmes, JDF SAR volunteer: "It's always exhilarating anytime there's a helicopter involved." BC SARA president Dale Parker: "Distance, terrain, weather, access routes, and limited connectivity can all affect how quickly search and rescue groups are able to reach someone in need." BC SARA has 3,200 highly-trained volunteer SAR members managing up to 2,000 incidents annually across the province. Ground search and rescue in B.C. is done solely by volunteers on call 24/365. The article was published ahead of the Victoria Day long weekend.