Volunteer Canadian rescue team homeless - any offers?
by Des Ryan on 21 Mar 2014
Squamish rescue team - when your boat can’t be your home SW
Sometimes it's tough being a volunteer rescuer. Take the Search and Rescue team in Squamish, at the end of Howe Sound north of Vancouver in Canada. They formed in 2009, they've been involved in 66 emergency marine incidents, they have no government funding, they're one of the only rescue stations on the B.C. coast that has two dedicated high-speed vessels, and they're homeless.
The 19-member unit has outgrown its small, unheated trailer at the Squamish Yacht Club, station leader Dan Price said this week. The rescue team's two boats are moored at the yacht club, yet its training equipment is housed at the district's Emergency Operation Centre. Having gear spread out is problematic for rescue responses and unit cohesiveness.
'Ninety per cent of our members are first responders,' Price said, adding that as well as normal rescue calls the team also assists with fire calls on the water and oil spills.
As a volunteer organization with no government funding, the unit is fundraising for future plans, Price said. The unit aims to bring in $750,000.
Cruising sailors out there, do you have any ideas? Can't someone give these good guys a home?
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