Courses
Missing Person Search Training Courses
Missing-person callouts are becoming more common. In most cases, local people arrive and begin looking before trained Search and Rescue teams get there. Good intentions alone are not enough; without guidance, time can be lost, evidence can be disturbed, and risk can increase. When community members are trained in what to do and what not to do, searches run more smoothly, are safer, and have a better chance of finding the person quickly.
SARMETRIX supports this need by offering two structured community-level training options:
Level 1 Community Search Awareness (Theory) and
Level 2 Community Search Responder (Practical)
Level 1 Community Search Awareness Training
Community Search Awareness (Theory) | 3 Hours – Classroom-based introductory session covering:
- Missing person behaviour and risk categories
- Detection principles and pattern recognition
- Search tactics and techniques (overview level)
- Role of community volunteers and boundaries
Level 2 Community Search Responder Training
Community Search Responder (Practical) | 1 Day
Field-based practical instruction covering:
- SAR Anchor Points: Initial Planning Point (IPP), Last Known Point (LKP), Point Last Seen (PLS)
- Search phases: Hasty, Sweep, Grid
- Searching lines vs points / critical separation
- Clue-led search methodology (4F’s: Find–Fix–Flag–Follow)
- Scene-of-crime considerations and contamination control
- Safety, span of control and team discipline
- Debrief methodology and lessons capture
