Central Okanagan Search and Rescue is Now Recruiting! Important Dates: 1. There will be an Open House at Okanagan College on September 19. It will be held in room H115 and will begin at 7 pm. This will be an informational session and an opportunity for you to meet current members and have your questions answered. 2. The deadline for all applications is September 26th at 5 pm. ALL SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS MUST BE ATTACHED TO YOUR APPLICATION. Any applications with missing documents will not be considered. On your application, please include as much detailed information about yourself as possible. Learn more at: http://www.cosar.ca/

It was a busy start to the long weekend for Central Okanagan Search and Rescue volunteers. At 5:30 Friday morning, COSAR was called by RCMP to help locate a missing female in the Smith Creek area of West Kelowna. A dozen searchers responded and, thanks to help from the public, she was found and taken to hospital an hour later. Less than 12 hours after that, COSAR was tasked by BC Ambulance to stabilize and extract an injured mountain biker from the KVR. A female tourist crashed at Trestle 8 at Myra Canyon and suffered a compound fracture to her arm. She was stabilized and transported by UTV to a waiting ambulance where she was taken to Kelowna General Hospital for treatment. COSAR would like to thank members of the public and the Myra Canyon Trail Host for their assistance.

At just after 8pm tonight, Central Okanagan Search and Rescue was called out to assist Kelowna Fire Department and B.C. Ambulance rescue an injured mountain biker on Vapour in Crawford Trails. The subject had injured her shoulder while on a group ride. Her group did everything right. In particular they recognized that she was going to need assistance and called 911 immediately. Members of COSAR’s bike team reached the subject approximately 1 hour after the initial call to 911 was placed. The team assessed and managed the subject’s injury and coordinated a plan for extraction with KFD. KFD, and B.C. Ambulance, used KFD’s Gator to reach the COSAR members and subject. The subject was then transported down the trail and transferred to a waiting ambulance at approximately 10:30pm. COSAR would like to thank the subject’s mountain bike group for their assistance and doing an awesome job supporting the subject while waiting for help to arrive. Photo: @foilans_photography #bcsar #teamwork #kelowna

This past weekend COSAR team members were on hand to help ensure a safe Across the Lake Swim! Congratulations to everyone that participated in this amazing event!

Great work yesterday by the entire team in the rescue of 3 subjects and their dog lost in the Postill Lake area for 25 hours. #kelowna #bcsar

A few of our happy members after our Wednesday night search for a missing senior. #bcsar

Tonight’s training involved an urban search for a subject with dementia. We are frequently tasked out for this type of search which carries a unique set of challenges ranging from lost person behaviour to subject care. Thank you to Theresa, our volunteer subject, for helping create a very real scenario. #bcsar

Last week COSAR hit the lake and worked on water rescue techniques. Always a great training session but even better when it’s +30c! #bcsar #kelowna

COSAR was called out today to support Kelowna Fire Department and B.C. Ambulance Service in the rescue of an injured mountain biker on Crawford Trails. The subject was packaged and extracted on KFDs Gator. A helicopter was on standby but paramedics decided that extraction via the gator was the best option. #bcsar #kelowna

Mother Nature decided to bust out a beautiful sunset for our Thursday night training! #bcsar #kelowna #rdco #westkelowna