This section will introduce you to the
responsibility of a search and rescue
organization the responsibility of its
coordinator there are long traditions of
the sea to assist others in distress
situations the responsibilities to
render assistance to a distressed vessel
or aircraft are based on humanitarian
considerations and established
international practice specific
obligations can be found in several
conventions including the following an x
12 to the convention on international
civil aviation the International
Convention on maritime search and rescue
regulation v10 of the International
Convention for the safety of life at sea
many states have accepted the obligation
to provide aeronautical and maritime
search and rescue coordination and
services on a 24-hour basis for their
territories territorial seas and where
appropriate the high seas to carry out
these responsibilities states have
established national search and rescue
organizations or joined one or more
other states to form a regional surgeon
rescue organization associated with an
ocean area continent a search-and-rescue
region is an area of defined dimensions
associated with a Rescue Coordination
Center within which search and rescue
services are provided the
search-and-rescue regions help to define
who has primary responsibility for
coordinating responses to de-stress
situations in every area of the world
the search and rescue system has three
general levels of coordination the
search and rescue coordinators the
search and rest
you mission coordinators the on-scene
coordinators search and rescue
coordinators are the top level managers
with overall responsibility for
establishing staffing equipping and
managing the search and rescue system
establishing the Rescue Coordination
Center and rescue sub centers providing
or arranging for search-and-rescue
facilities co-ordinating
search-and-rescue training developing
search-and-rescue policies each
search-and-rescue operation is carried
out under the guidance of a search
mission coordinator who guides the
search-and-rescue operation until rescue
has been affected or further efforts
would be of no avail the search mission
coordinator should be well trained in
all search-and-rescue processes be
thoroughly familiar with the applicable
search and rescue plans and procedures
when two or more search-and-rescue
facilities are working together on the
same mission one person on scene may be
needed to coordinate the activities of
all participating facilities the search
mission coordinator designates an
on-scene coordinator who maybe the
person in charge of a search-and-rescue
unit ship or aircraft participating in a
search and nearby facility in a position
to handle on scene coordinated jutice
the person in charge of the first
facility to arrive at the scene will
normally assume the on-scene coordinator
function until the search mission
coordinator a ranges for that person to
be relieved the search and rescue
organization can be illustrated like
this Authority head of search and
give service Rescue Coordination Center
Rescue Coordination sub centre
search-and-rescue resources