Search and Rescue Activities in Disasters

Abstract

The objective of this chapter is to review what is known about search and rescue activities in disasters, including heavy urban search and rescue teams. The accumulation of scientific knowledge about search and rescue (SAR), which is, as reflected in this chapter, disproportionately centered on disasters in the United States, allows us to identify certain recurrent patterns that should be considered in the development of an effective plan for national emergency response. The following sections present what is known about SAR, factors affecting survival, the behavior of victims, the impact of social and cultural arrangements, and ecological aspects of SAR in constrained and unconstrained spaces. This is followed by brief discussions of the search and recovery activities in the Columbia Shuttle Accident as well as by examinations of the World Trade Center (WTC) and Pentagon 9/11 SAR operations. The chapter concludes with an acknowledgment of the remaining research gaps in our understanding of SAR and with a summary of what needs to be done to improve SAR operations worldwide.