2019 international commission for alpine rescue...

2019INTERNATIONALCOMMISSIONFORALPINERESCUE(ICAR)CONFERENCE

TERRESTRIALRESCUECOMMISSIONREPORTOCTOBER9-13,2019ZAKOPANE,POLAND

BYMRATERRESTRIALRESCUEDELEGATESTOMWOODANDDALEWANG

TERRESTRIALRESCUECOMMISSIONREPORT2019

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PracticalDayintheKościeliskaValleyThe2019InternationalCommissionforAlpineRescue(ICAR)Pre-ConferencePracticalDayonWednesday,October9thfocusedonthethemeof“teamwork,”withpresentersusingtheirworkshopstodemonstratecooperationintechnicalrescue,electronicsearch,medicalsimulations.Althoughtheweatherwasintermittentlyrainyandwet,theeventwasagreatsuccesswithalotoflearningandinteraction.ThePracticalDaywaswell-attended,withmorethan200rescuersattendingthevariousstations.TheKościeliskaValleyisoneofthemostpopularandoftenvisitedplacesintheTatraMountains,withasmallriverrunningdownavalleyringedwithlimestonecliffs.Distantrockfallwasacommonsoundthroughouttheday,andattendeeswereabletotakeshelterfromtheelementsinacoupleofthecavesnearthestations.ThedayconcludedwithhelicopterrescuesimulationsfromtwodifferenthelicoptersusedbyTOPR,demonstratingthecooperationandteamworkbetweentheTerrestrialRescueandAirRescueCommissions.TheofficialICARPracticalDayvideobyTopographMediacanbefoundat:https://vimeo.com/371651432?fbclid=IwAR1eaZFoyRg4c8eggylAJyQe4xYjM6atYLcTXYlwkcWxH5TUOlfHVxGKokk


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SmallPartyAssistedRescue(SPAR)TechniquesEddyCartayafromPortlandMountainRescue,OregonandTomWoodfromAlpineRescueTeaminColoradodemonstratedseveralsingleropemethodsforraisinganinjuredpartyusingonly1or2persons.Adaptedfromcaverescuetechniques,methodsincludedanassisted2:1uphaulandseveralvariationsofadiminishingloopcounterbalancehaul.Asdemonstrated,therescuerneedstobewell-practicedatascendinganddescendingtherope(VerticalMobility).Thesetypesoftechniquesallowasinglerescuertoraiseandloweraninjuredsubjectinacontrolledfashionwithoutoutsideassistance.Onetake-awayisthatjustby“closingtheloop,”orattachingtherescuertothesubjectofthecounterbalancehaul,mechanicaladvantageisincreasedbyafactorofroughlyone.


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SingleRopeCrevasseRescueSystemThePelotonGendarmeriedeHauteMontagne(PGHM)celebratedits60thanniversaryandits40,000thsearchandrescuemissionlastyear.Thisstationwasademonstrationoftheirsinglerope2:1crevasserescuesystemusingaPetzlMaestroforloweringtheloadononeside,andaHarkenwinchusedonthehaulline.Oneendofthe120mropewasfixedtoananchoronthesurface,andtheotherendwasanchoredwiththewinchattached.TherescuerrappeledintothecrevasseusingtheMaestrooffthefirstanchor.Whenreadytobehauledout,aPetzlASAPandAbsorbicaLanyard(forthe2personload)wasusedtoattachtheloadtothehaulline,andthewinchwasthenactivated.TheMaestroprotectedtheloadintheeventofahaulsideropefailure,andtheASAPwouldactivateandholdtheloadiftherappel/staticsideanchorweretofail.

TwinDyneemaRopeSystemforTechnicalRescueTOPR,thePolishhostteamforthisyear’sconference,usesthistwintensionropesysteminthehighmountainsbothfortheweightsavingsofthe8mmdyneema,butalsoforthehighstrengthandabrasionresistancethatdyneemaoffers.Theyhavedone600mlitterloweringsintheTatrasusingthissystem.


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Adynamicropewithatleast3separateanchorsisalwaysusedtoconstructthefocalpointanchorforthissystem.ThetwindyneemamainlinesarecontrolledbyMunter/ItalianhitchesonmatchingsteelHMScarabiners,withindustrialshockabsorbersprotectingthelitterandthetwoattendantsfromaninadvertentdynamicload.Allendconnectionsaresplicedinsteadofknotted.Afterapatientisloadedinthelitter,extrafrictionisaddedbyconvertingtoSuperMuntersonbothlines.Thoughthedyneemaropeslookedabitmorethanwellused,TOPRstressedthattheyusedstrictretirementcriteriawheninspectingtheropes,andretirethemwhenmorethan20%ofthe8mmdiameterropeislostduetowear.

NeosoftSARPhoneLocatorThetechnologyforcreatingportablemobilecellphonetowershasexistedforalongtime.TheNeosoftinnovationaddsadirectionalantennawhichallowstherescuertoisolateasinglephonesignaland,muchlikeusingaReccodetector,followthestrongestsignaltofindthephone.Thiswaspresentedasapossibleavalanchesearchstrategy,asintestingtheywereabletofindphoneseven1.5munderthesnow.Ofcourse,thephonehastobeonandtransmitting(notinairplanemode).ThoughaninterestingpossibilityfortheEuropeanmarket,FCCregulationsprohibitingtheapplicationofthiskindoftechnologyintheU.S.wouldmakeitdifficultforthisproducttobeapprovedandutilizedforuseintheStates.


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CaveRescueLitters/PackagingEquipmentLedbytheMed-Com’sDr.RogerMortimerwiththeNationalCaveRescueCommission,thisstationfocusedonthechallengesofpackaging,immobilizingandtransportingsubjectsinthecavingenvironmentusingvariouslittersandtechniques.CrewResourceManagementAscenariowasactedoutbytheparticipants,withrolesincludingahelicopterpilot,amountainrescuer,andaphysician.Inthescenario,eachparticipantwasonlyfocusedontheirparticularneedswithoutacknowledgingtheothers,andthepointwasmadethateachmemberoftherescuecrewneedstocommunicatebetterwiththeothers.TipsonteamperformancefromRallandGaba(2005)werediscussed.Techniquesthatincludedanticipation,callingforhelpearly,usingallavailableinformation,rememberingtodoublecheck,tryingtoavoidfixationerrors,usingcognitiveaids(e.g.checklists)anddistributingtheworkloadwerestressed.Thestationfacilitatorsencouragedrescuerstotakea10second“time-out”ifthingsdon’tseemtobegoingwell,allowingtheteamtore-calibrateprioritiesandre-assesstheavailableinformation.


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TerrestrialRescueCommissionAssemblyofDelegatesThursday,October10th,2019SeveralimportanttopicswereaddressedattheopeningoftheTerrestrialRescueCommissionmeeting.LotsofdiscussionwashadinregardstohavingICARpublishknotstrengthreductioninropes.Sinceage,construction,pullspeedsanddiametersallaffectknotstrength,shouldICARjustmakearecommendationof50%reductionforall?Discussionwastableduntilaworkinggroupcouldbecreatedandpresentmoreinformation.SeveralexistingICARTER-COMrecommendationswerereviewed,asisICARpolicyforallcommissionrecommendationsevery5years.Hereareafewrecommendationsthatwerediscussed:• Whichispreferred,doubleoverhandknotvsbend?Nochanges• Redundancyforloweringorraisingwithfiberropes?Nochanges• Staticropebrakes?Nochanges• Ropedifferentiation:Static,Lowstretch,dynamic?Nochanges• Winterrescueequipment?Nochanges• Systemsinmountainrescue,nochangesCaveRescueWorkshopDebriefEddyCartaya(U.S.)andKubaHornowski(Poland)discussedthecaverescueworkshop,whichtookplacejustbeforethestartofICAR.Theypresentedthepossibilityofcaverescuebeingasub-commissionoftheTerrestrialCommission.PolishandSlovakianteamsdiscussedcross-borderteamworkonTatramountainsandcaves,mentioningthe25jointoperationsviahelicopterlastyear.Theyalsodoavalancheforecastingtogether,stressingthat,“mountainshavenoborders.”ICSandICARTheprosandconsoftheIncidentCommandSystemwereaddressedinafewdifferentpresentationsandworkinggroups.AlistairRead(Wales),presentedacasestudy,“ICSFeatures,FunctionsandFailures.”• Missinghelicopter,trackedcellphonestodiscoversearcharea,landSARtheninvolved,delayof8hours• Multipleagenciesonland&seafromWalesandIreland• WouldICSimplementationhavehelpedtheincident?Citedmultipleshortcomingsofsearchefforts,butalsosomegoodthingsDanHourihan(U.S.A)outlinedtheprogressoftheICARICSWorkingGroupinregardsto:• LAST(Locate,Access,Stabilize,Transport)forSAR• Workgroupgoals:ListofbestpracticesandbasisforICARrecommendations• 5countriesgaveinput• Severalcommonthemescommontoeachincident,including:Chaos,LackofInformation,BadInformationICSWorkGroupmemberAsgeirKristinson(Iceland),notedthatwhenusingICS,thereareseveralkeyconsiderations:


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• GoodsoftskillscrucialtosuccessfulimplementationofICS• Needstobescalableandmodular• Shouldbeabletoholduptocross-borderuse• Shouldworkonsmallandlargeincidents,land,seaandair• Shouldintegrateintoothernationalsystems• Betimelywithinfosharing• Sharecommonlanguage/terms


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TerrestrialRescueCommissionGeneralAssemblyNotesFriday,October11th,2019ListedbelowareseveralTerrestrialRescue-themedpresentations.PresentationsthataddressAirRescue,AvalancheRescueorMedCommthemescanbefoundwithineachrespectiveICARCommission’sreportontheMRAwebsite.RescueAfteraBearAttack,LessonsLearnedfromaMultipleAgencyResponse,AnthonyStevens(TetonCountySAR)StevenspresentedareportonhowinteragencyteamworkwascalledforwhenabearattackedandkilledahuntingguideandwoundedhisclientinremoteWyomingnearTerraceMountain.Withnopre-planforthiskindofcall,rescuerswerenotfamiliarwithotherinvolvedagencies,whichpresentedchallengesforallwhenbothrespondingfortherescueoftheclientandthesubsequentrecoveryoftheguide.Lessonslearned:

• Delayofrecoveryforrescuersafetywaskey.Teamshadtowaittilldawntofindguideforfearofanotherattack.Insertedbyhelicopter,theyneededarmedstategamewardentoaccompanyfieldteam

• Teamworkcrucialforsuccessandsafety.Wheninserted,onefieldteammemberinsertedwith3longgunsandamedic,searchersworkedunderarmedsupervision

• Deceasedguidelocated50yardsfromattacksite.Hehadusedhisbearsprayandhisbodywasstillintactafterinitialfatalattack

Takeawaysforalloftheorganizationsinvolvedintherescueandrecoveryincluded:Everyoneneededbettertrainingfornon-routinerescues,SARTeamsneededtocreateabiggamerescueplanandallrespondersneededtoimproveinter-agencycommunicationsonfuturemulti-agencycalls.WOLFHOUND,OlivierFavre(France)Acellphonebasedsearchtechnology,createdinFrancewhere94%ofFrenchcitizenshavecellphones.ChallengesinimplementationincludededucationonhowtousecellphonesforSARwithinlegalrestrictions.ThePGHMcurrentlyusesthistechnology,whichwasoriginallyusedtolocateinmatesinprisonbyfindingtheirphones.

• Gendloc,aphonelocationtoolweb-based,usedmorethan6,000annually• WolfhoundProusedtofindsomeonewhoisreportedmissingbyathirdparty,used

fromhelo,2yeartrialperiod• 2livessaved,10uses• Needphonenumber,needtomakethephonering,needtohavethedevicerelatively

close,lineofsightDisadvantagesofthetechnologyincludeits1,600meterrange,Wolfhoundquicklydrainsbatteriesquickly,thefactthatittakesatleasttwowell-trainedpeopletouse,needtoknowcellnumberandsearchersneedtohaveaknown,definedsearcharea.


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PetzlMaestroandDualTensionedMainlineSystems,SylvainCouloumy(DCCRS-CNEASinFrance)AsdemonstratedduringthePracticalDayScenarioofthesamename,thePetzlMaestrowasunveiledasakeycomponentofaDualTensionedMainlineSystemforloweringandraisingarescueload.Fortheraise,theydiddual3:1swiththePetzlRescue-Cenderropegrabandpulleys.AredirectedthroughanextrapulleyontheMaestrobecketallowedforabetterinline,downhillpull.ThoughtheMaestrois95%efficientwhenusedasaprogresscapturepulley,itisnotrecommendedforuseasapersonaldescender.CanyonRescue,PinoAntonini(ItalianNationalCanyonRescueSchool)Speedisanimportantconsiderationduringcanyonrescuebecauseofmovingwaterandhypothermia.Themainpointofthispresentationwasthatbyreducingthetimeneededtoperformacanyonrescue,youcanreducetherisktoboththesubjectandtherescuers.Usinghighlyskilled,fitrescuersinsmallteamswithsmalldiameterropesandlightweight,recreationalgear,Antoninishowedavideorecreatingamulti-pitchcanyonrescuethatdepictedrescuersusinghumanhighdirectionals,guidinglinestofloatthelitteroveruneventerraintoreducerescuerfatigueandlotsofhumancounterweightedanchors.CivilLiabilityforAlpineRescueTeams,RickLorenz(MRA)Lorenz,anattorneyhimself,discussedhowandwhyrescuersneedtobetterassessandmitigateriskswithSAR.Lorenznotedthat:

• GreenAmberRed(GAR)Modeloftenusedtoassessrisk,butit’sverysubjective• Civilactionisdifferentthancriminalaction,it’sbetweentwopeople,onewhousually

seeksfinancialcommendations• Non-paidrescuersarelookedatdifferentlythanpaidrescuers

TheGoodSamaritanLawcoverssomeonewhorendersaidonavoluntarybasis.Commonlawjurisdictionsprotectthesevolunteers.CivilLawjurisdictionsusuallyaffordvolunteersmoreprotection.LorenzcitedaMay2019rescueonMtHood,whichhadafourhourdelaythatmayhavecontributedtoafataloutcome,whichresultedinthefamilyofthefatalitybeingawarded$25,000inasubsequentcivilsuit.CaveRescueTeamLeaderTraining,DarkoBaksic(CroatianMountainRescueTeam)InCroatia,CaveRescuefallsundertheCroatianMountainRescueCommission,whichhas952volunteers.Croatiahasroughly9,000caves,with4deeperthan1,000m.Thereare2pitsmorethan500mdrops,andsomeverylongcaves(@17,000meterslong).Inadditiontoprovidingeducationforcavingclubsandsmallpartyrescuecourses,theCMRSalsoassistsinthedangerousjoboftheremovalofleftoverorun-explodedwar-erabombsfromcaves.Todate,they’vehadmorethan500rescuersfinishbasiccaverescuetraining.Theircaverescueteamleadercourseisdedicatedtocaverescuerswithlotsofcavingexperience,withself-sufficiencyandproblemsolvinginharshenvironmentsbeingimportantconsiderations.TheteamleaderclassutilizesbothFrench(shortsegments)andItalian(longersegments)littermovementtechniques,manyanchoringandSRTskillsandbivouackingskills.Thisisall


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accomplishedbythesuccessfulcompletionofacomplicatedmockrescue.Doneoverthreeweekends,24rescuersneededtostafftherescuetraining,whichtargetedcompletiontimesof72and96hours.EuropeanCaveRescueAssociation(ECRA),DinkoNovoselComprisedof22memberorganizations,mostlyfromEurope,ECRAisanon-profiteducationalorganizationandnotanactualcaverescueteam.ECRAwasinstrumentalinsupportingtheThaicaverescue,aswellasmanyotherlargescaleinternationalefforts.TheirTechnicalCommissiontestsboltsincavesandmakesrecommendations,asdoestheirCaveDivingCommission.SmallPartAssistedRescue(SPAR)CaveRescueTechniquesusedforAlpineRescueSituations,EddyCartaya(NCRC)SPARtechniques,whichwereoriginallyutilizedforhighurgencycaverescueswithinremoteanddifficulttoaccesscavesites,canbeadaptedforusewithintheAlpineenvironment,asCartayaexplained.SPAR,aphilosophyandsetoftechniqueswhichcanbeusedtoresolveunplannedtechnicalroperescueproblemswithminimalgear,hasbeenpreviouslytaughtinbothEuropeandNorthAmerica.Styledaftercavingexpeditionrescuetechniques,butnowadaptedtomountainrescue,SPARusesfewerpeople,lightergear,smallerropes,lowerloads(hopefully)forfasterrescuetimesduetohypothermiaandmotionlesssuspensionconcerns.ThoughSingleRopeTechnique(SRT)hasbeenusedforyearsincaves,CartayanotedthatsomecommonmisconceptionsplagueSPARtechniques.Themistakennotionsthatthesetechniquesareextreme,dangerous,havealackofredundancy,usetoomuchSRTsometimespresentdifficultieswhenpresentedtoabove-groundrescuers.ThreemainfamiliesoftechniquesareusedwithSPAR:

1. ClosedLoop2. Counterweight3. TravelingHauls

Also,Cartayasaidthatheoftenasksthreeimportantquestionsforeachsystem.“#1.Doesitwork?#2.Isitefficient?And#3.,IsitsafeENOUGH?”hesaid.Notingthatspeedaloneisasignificantriskreductiontechnique,Cartayaalsosaid,“Theenemyofgoodisbetter,andasmall,skilledteamcanoftendomorethanalargemoderatelyskilledteam.”


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TerrestrialRescueCommissionGeneralAssemblyNotesSaturday,October12th,2019SimulationinMountainRescue2.0,theFutureHasBegun,MatthiasJacob(BergwachtBayern)BergwachtBayernisthemountainrescueserviceforBavariainGermany.Foundedabout100yearsago,theyrespondtoapproximately12,000missionsperyearwith3,500volunteersdistributedin40operationalunits.TheirindoortrainingfacilityinBadTolzhasthecapacitytosimulaterescuemissionsfromdispatchallthewaythroughdeliveryofthepatienttoahospital.This1,700squaremeterbuildinghasindoortrees,aclimbingwall,awaterfallandpool,buildings,gondolacarsfromaskilift,andhelicoptershangingfromtheceilingwithfanstosimulaterotordownwash.Mountainweatherconditionscanbereplicatedaswell,includingrain,snow,andtemperaturesdowntoaslowas-20C.Highfidelitymannequinsareusedtotrainrespondersonfirstaidandmedicalcare,andaseparatepartofthefacilityisconstructedasthehallwaysandresuscitationroomofareceivinghospital.Newrescuersareorientedandtrainedhere,andarenoteligibletorespondtoactualmissionsuntiltheyhaveachievedsatisfactoryperformanceinthispracticeenvironment.


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SuspensionTraumaRecommendations,Dr.GiacomoStrapazzon(EURAC)BasedonsomenewerresearchperformedatEURAC,therecommendationsforapproachingandtreatingapatientwithsuspectedsuspensiontraumahavebeenrevised.Thepathophysiologyofsyncope,orpassingout,isnowthoughttobemostlikelyvagallymediated,andunpredictableastothetimingofonset.ThenewdraftofMedCommSuspensionSyndromerecommendationsincludes;aprohibitionofsoloropeworkalone;establishmentofprovisionsforprompt,onsiterescueofsuspendedpersons;arecommendationthatanyonesuspendedinaharnessshouldtrytokeeptheirlegsmovinguntilrescuedandthatrespondersshouldconsiderhospitalevaluationformusclebreakdown(rhabdomyolysis)andevaluationofkidneyfunctionforanyonewhoissuspectedofsufferingfromprolongedmotionlesssuspension.TheICARMedCommwilllikelyhaveafinaldraftoftheirrecommendationsforSuspensionSyndromenextyear.CaveRescue:DifferingPatternsofRescuesandtheResponsesBetweenEuropeandNorthAmerica,RogerMortimer(NCRC)andInigoSoteras(Spain)Althoughcausesofcavingrescuesaresimilar,theinjuriesseenaredifferentbetweenthetwocontinents.MoreupperextremityinjuriesareseeninEuropeancaverescues.PossiblythisisrelatedtothefactthatNorthAmericancavestendtobemorehorizontallyoriented,whereascavesinEuropecanbequitedeepandinabilitytoascendoutonyourowncancreateaneedforrescue.Fallswerethemostcommonreasonforneedingarescue,followedbyequipmentfailure,rockfallandgettingstranded.NoEasyWeeks–BusyAugustinthePolishTatras,AndrzejGorkaandJakubHornowski(TOPR)Youthoughtyourteamwasbusy?Inone4-weekperiodinAugustof2018,thehostteamforICARrespondedto436touristswhowerestrandedinthemountainswhenacablecarbrokedown,alightningstormonthesummitofGiewontpeakresultingin150injuredand4deceasedclimbers,andthelargestcaverescuemissionintheir110-yearhistory.Whileallthiswasgoingon,theyalsoconducted117otherrescuesof134totalpeople,including37helicoptermissions!Thecaverescuealoneinvolvedover6500rescuerhours;theypointedoutthatnoneofthiswaspossiblewithouttheteamworkinvolvingtheassistanceofmultipleotheragencies.


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TeamworkforMissingPeopleinAustria,MartinGurdet(OBRD)SearchingformissingsubjectswiththehelicoptermountedReccodetectorinAustriainvolvescollaborationbetweenthepoliceandtherescueagency.Thepolicehavepilotsandtheaircraft,andthedetectorisoperatedbyamountainrescuer.Theypresentedtwocasesinwhichmissingsubjectswerefoundusingthereflectionsfromadigitalcameraandcellphone,includingaskierwhowas3mdeepinacrevasse.Theincreasedpoweroverthehand-helddeviceallowsasearchcorridorof100m,coveringalotofgroundinashorttime,andsometimesenablingdetectionevenifthesubjectisnotwearingaReccoreflector.


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71stICARAssemblyofDelegatesSunday,October12th,2019Thefinaldayofthe2019conferencewasdedicatedtotheICARbusinessmeeting,thevotefornewmemberorganizationsaswellasplanningforfutureICARconferences.Allmembersagreedthatthe2019conferencewasahugesuccess,withmorethan400attendeesrepresenting34countries.TOPRdidanamazingjoboforganizingsuchalargeandcomplexevent.ICAR’sgrowthremainsatroughly10%annually,bringingthetotalnumberofmemberorganizationstomorethan120.MuchdiscussionhasrevolvedaroundthesustainabilityofICARwithsuchasteadyrateofgrowthsooneclipsingthevenuespacesavailableforfutureconferences.ThefollowingMRAICARDelegateswerepresent:AirRescueCommission:CharleyShimanski,AirRescueCommissionPresident(AlpineRescueTeam)AvalancheRescueCommission:OyvindHenningsen(EverettMountainRescue)MichaelFinger(SaltLakeCountySAR)MedicalCommission:AlisonSheets,MedCommVicePresident(RockyMountainRescueGroup)ChristopherVanTilburg(CragRats)TerrestrialRescueCommission:TomWood(AlpineRescueTeam)DaleWang(RockyMountainRescueTeam)Thefollowingorganizationswereapprovedformembershipin2019.NotethatACategorymembersreceive4votes,B1Categorymembersreceive2votes,B2Categorymembersreceiveonevote,andothermembershipcategoriesdonotreceivevotingprivileges.CCategory:GREMM–GrupodeRescateMédicoenMontañaGRIMM–Grouped'InterventionMédicaleenMontagneJR–JandarmeriaRomânăSMX–SiriusMedXB2Category:KOMOAAP–CyprusMountaineeringFederationPHSB–PolizeihubschrauberstaffelBayernB1Category:BMRA–BraemarMountainRescueAssociationDEE-AAD–Dept.ofEnvironment&Energy/AustralianAntarcticDivisionGC-GRAE–GeneralitatdeCatalunya/BombersGRAENSR–NorthShoreRescue


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FutureICARConferenceLocations:ICARConvention2020inThessaloniki,Greece,ICARConvention2021inVösendorf/ReichenauanderRax,Austria,ICARConvention2023:South-Tirol,Italy

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