On a cold, blustery day the team received the WhatsApp callout for a training mission. The first clue of the adventure we were heading into was on the way to Incident Base. A large Ponderosa Pine tree had blown over and was partially blocking the road. Los Alamos police, including one of own members, was busy clearing the road. We learned later that the temperature was a balmy 26 degrees Fahrenheit with sustained winds of 10-15 mph with gusts to 30 mph.
The training for the day consisted of two exercises. One team was to grid search an area looking for clues and the second team was to package and transport an injured person in our litter. First we practiced setting up the litter for snow travel then moved into the snow and packaged the subject in a hypothermia wrap, affectionally called a “hypo wrap.” The wrap consists of placing a waterproof tarp into the litter and adding an insulation layer. We used foam pads and a wool blanket. We then place the subject into the litter covering them with more insulation, in this case a sleeping bag. Finally, we add a second waterproof tarp over the top.
Moving the sled in soft, deep snow takes significant effort and we found that having members wearing snowshoes pack the trail ahead of the sled made the job much easier. Also, it is important to have webbing or rope attached to the side of the litter to allow members to help guide the sled from the side. Even though the sled has runners, on a slope it will tend to drift sideways unless someone is pulling on the sled from the uphill side.
Below is a video from the patients perspective.
Finally, the teams switched roles and the team that had been grid searching moved to litter practice and the litter team went out to find clues. Unfortunately, time was running short, so our team didn’t get a chance to finish grid searching the area. The first team to search a grid did complete the assignment with about a 25% probability of detection. Twenty Five percent sounds bad but given the clues where out overnight and it snowed, and the wind blow snow around the clues were very hard to see. The snow made for great practice looking for clues in winter conditions. Overall, everyone learned or re-learned lessons for working in adverse conditions. Thanks to the organizers and all that participated!