Winter Survival, Brandon Manitoba

Several members of BRSARA participated in a Winter Survival course offered through the Office of the Fire Commissioner (OFC). Course instruction included a review of navigation, shelter and fire building, winter survival equipment, and we certainly cannot forget the practical application in temperatures that dropped to -37 degrees Celsius with windchill. BRSARA would like to thank the instructors with OFC for their expertise, time and instruction in developing resilient Search and Rescue Volunteers. Winter Survival courses offered through the OFC are held annually, and are a requirement for becoming an active Ground Search and Rescue (GSAR) volunteer.

Slideshow Photo credit: team members of WINSAR who also took part in this course, February 2019.

Brandon Regional Search and Rescue Winter Survival Training Exercises

To ensure our skills are kept sharp and ready-to-go, BRSARA volunteers share skills and experiences by training together at a yearly winter survival training exercise. This is a great time to test out clothing and equipment, shelter building ideas, and to practice various forms of fire starting. There is a wide diversity of experience within the group to take advantage of, making field practice an important addition to the BRSARA team.

Here are a few samples of winter survival training in past years:

Winter Survival training exercise 2018

Winter Survival training exercise 2020