Search and rescue team needs more volunteers (From Salisbury Journal)

Search and rescue team needs more volunteers

4:29pm Monday 14th January 2013 in Headlines By Morwenna Blake

VOLUNTEERS who are called in by police to help find people who have gone missing are hoping to encourage more people in south Wiltshire to come forward to join them.

Wiltshire Search and Rescue provides an invaluable service in assisting police when a missing person report is filed, helping to find children, older people with dementia and those police fear may be intending to harm themselves.

The team has about 30 to 40 volunteers across the county, but most in the area between Swindon and Devizes, with only about six people covering Salisbury and the surrounding area.

Anyone over 18 who is reasonably fit and healthy can volunteer.

When an incident is reported to police, officers inform the Wiltshire Search and Rescue team, and text messages are sent out to team members who reply to say if they are free to attend or not.

Members who are away or on holiday take themselves off call for that period of time and won’t be contacted.

The team has a rescue vehicle based at Devizes Police Station.

For those who would like to find out more about the team’s role, an open event is being held in Porton on Sunday, February 3.

Anyone can simply turn up on the day, meeting at Dstl at 10.30am, or to find out more call Gareth Knowles on 0771 2617170.