Chastin Martel
Lakeside Leader
Lesser Slave Lake Search and Rescue (LSLSAR) is putting the kayaks they bought last year to the test.
The group had purchased two kayaks, a kayak trailer and safety gear, two ATVs, and a flatdeck utility trailer. They paid for these with a grant from Search and Rescue Alberta, money from the Government of Alberta and donations from the Lesser Slave Regional Fire Society.
Training for members takes place twice a month on Wednesday evenings, at fire halls or on the water. It includes training with the kayaks. Each session is two and a half hours long, focusing on water safety, rescue techniques, search skills, and even evidence searches with RCMP guidance.
LSLSAR serves Slave Lake and the M.D. of Lesser Slave River, but also takes part in searches in other parts of Alberta when needed. It’s associated with the Lesser Slave Lake Regional Fire Service.
Kristy Wakeling is one of the search and rescue volunteers. She’s a fisheries biologist and says being around water professionally makes the kayak portion of the training “close to her heart.”
It connects her career with her volunteer work, giving her another way to contribute to her community.
In situations where there are evacuations or emergencies such as floods, the team can be called out to assist.
“Our jobs are basically to respond to call-outs involving missing persons and occasionally we help out with humanitarian responses,” says Wakeling.
The kayaks are one of the tools the group uses. They are helpful in rescues along the shoreline, missing persons searches, and flood responses.
“With search and rescue, a lot of the work we do is along shorelines,” she says.
“So, shoreline searches for missing persons. Being able to vocalize (call to the missing person) and get really close to shore is important for us when we’re trying to make contact with a person or look in those little crevices and areas spaces where some of the bigger boats can’t.”
The team has about 28 members, half of whom are confident around water, while the other half are working to build their skills. All of the members are volunteers.
“So, we’re required to be trained at the level of professionals, but no compensation. We just do it for our community,” she says.
“Water can be nerve-wracking to some people. So, trying to build confidence slowly is important.”
Asked what has been the best method to locating people, Wakeling says, “It really varies. Every situation we get called out to can be different. And the really interesting thing about our area is it’s so diverse.”
The region makes searches unique, not only because of its size but also because of the variety of terrain that rescuers may be called into at a moment’s notice.
From lake shores to backcountry trails, every search brings its own set of challenges.
“We live in a natural wonderland, where people like to play outside and explore and things like that. So, it does get pretty interesting,” says Wakeling.
Searches can range from beaches to remote woods.
The team often needs to adapt quickly to different environments and use whatever tools are most effective.
“We can use quads and go all the way back to where we can’t find a road,” she says.
“Sometimes we’ll go from paddling the shoreline one day to driving into the deep bush the next.”
Not every search takes them into the wilderness. Sometimes the situations unfold much closer to home.
“We’ve had different call-outs where we’re looking to assist somebody who’s walked away from a facility or a home, and we just don’t know where they are,” says Wakeling.
What is rewarding? For Wakeling, the variety of the work is the part that makes it meaningful.
“You really never know what the next call is going to be. It can change so quickly, and you have to be ready for anything,” she says.
For anyone who is interested in volunteering with search and rescue, Wakeling says they can apply during the recruitment period. It is usually in the fall, she says.
Dates have not been finalized. Announcements are usually made on the Town of Slave Lake’s Facebook and on their website at slavelake.ca.
You can find the applications under the ‘Emergency Services’ tab and then by clicking on ‘Search and rescue.’
You can also fill out an application at the Lesser Slave Regional Fire Service.
