Join the Preventative Search and Rescue Volunteers and Park Staff to learn about new park initiatives.
The Park (Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore) will be holding an event in Glen Haven near the Cannery this coming Saturday, July 31 from 11-2 pm.
The Park service will be showcasing their emergency equipment, including a UTV (all-terrain vehicle used for rescues), Coyote inflatable boat, and the newest addition, EMILY.
EMILY (pictured) is a water-borne drone that is used to provide emergency floatation for someone who has either floated too far from shore or has been taken out by a riptide. There will be demonstrations of EMILY and some guests may be able to actually operate it. The purpose of this training is for the Glen Lake Fire Department, NPS, and PSAR to be able to train with this new asset.
The NPS Mobile Visitor Center will also be there to talk about the Great Lakes ecosystem and will have a display of a water safety video.
Since the PSAR program was started in 2016, the number of actual Search and Rescue has dropped from 31 to only 9 last year. The number of safety and medical-related calls has dropped from 56 to 9 last year. These drop-in calls for service have saved area first responders hundreds of hours. A fact not measured in these statistics is that tens of thousands of people have had a safer and more memorable experience at Sleeping Bear.
To learn more about the Preventative Search and Rescue program and apply to volunteer, visit our PSAR program page.
A link is to an article published last fall on the success of the PSAR program can be found on the Leelanau Ticker: https://www.leelanauticker.
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