Light Technical Rescue
Swiftwater/Dive
What We do
The Water Rescue Team responds to any water-related situation, both above and under the water's surface. Our swift water rescue technicians are able to rescue victims trapped by flood waters, boating accidents, or have gotten lost on the water. We also have divers trained for rescue and recovery operations. Our Water Rescue Team operates as a part of the New River Valley Water Rescue and Recovery Association and routinely responds to incidents within Blacksburg and the surrounding areas.
Training
Swiftwater Rescue Technicians renew their training every other year through certification courses held either at the New River or at the U.S. National Whitewater Center. Once a member has this initial certification, they are eligible for specialty training in advanced, night, ice, and boat operations.
Dive Technicians undergo advanced training beyond standard recreational certification before being considered eligible to dive in rescue and recovery situations. Rescue diving is a completely different mindset than standard scuba diving, and requires additional consideration to safety, communication, dive tactics, and operations.
Cave Rescue
What We Do
Blacksburg Rescue responds to cave rescue incidents including:
Search for missing persons
Semi-technical and technical cave evacuations
Underground Search Management
Recovery Assistance
Members of the Blacksburg Volunteer Rescue Squad with specialized cave rescue training and experience respond to incidents involving people who become lost or injured inside a cave and require specialized technical resources to rescue them safely. This team of volunteers can respond locally and throughout the state when requested for assistance.
Who we are
Cave Rescue is a highly specialized aspect of the Technical Rescue division of the Blacksburg Volunteer Rescue Squad. It is comprised of volunteers with a great deal of training and experience working in caves. Our training includes, but is not limited to, National Cave Rescue Commission (NCRC) trainings of the National Speleological Society (NSS).
Meetings and Training
For current information on cave rescue meetings, feel free to contact us. We typically host in-house training twice per month that are announced by our training committee. Additionally, we hold a mock cave rescue annually where we involve additional local and regional emergency resources to develop joint response efforts.
Rope Rescue
What We Do
Rope rescue involves both low-angle and high-angle work with ropes and rigging. We might be called to rig a line to lower and raise a stretcher to reach a car over an embankment. We could respond with the Cave Rescue team to set up a vertical descent into a cave.
Training
We do a review of different knots at each monthly Technical Rescue meeting along with other regularly scheduled Thursday night trainings. The equipment bay at the station has several vertical stations where climbing and rappelling can be taught and practiced. We also have access to the rappelling tower and Lane Stadium on the Virginia Tech campus for training events.
Search and Rescue
The Search and Rescue team responds to call-outs to search for missing persons, from children to despondents to subjects with dementia. There are also calls to search for downed aircraft, perform semi-technical and technical evacuations, provide search management, and to assist in disaster recovery. The Virginia Search and Rescue program is administered by the Va. Department of Emergency Management in cooperation with the Virginia Search and Rescue Council. Statewide training provides certification for members and includes search tactics, search theory, clue awareness, sign cutting, tracking, and land navigation. Members are also trained in wilderness medicine, outdoor survival skills, remote rescue operations, disaster response, and search management.
Search and Rescue teams respond throughout the New River Valley when requested. BVRS also has a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Va. Department of Emergency Management to respond to call-outs across the state.
