Have beacons taken the ‘search’ out of land-based search and rescue?

Even as public use of beacons and emerging communication technologies grows, data from land-based SAR incidents reminds us that robust capability in traditional search methods is still vital for our sector.

Responders rely on fundamental capabilities such as track and clue awareness, search methods and understanding lost person behaviour to find a subject person who does not have a beacon or electronic communication device.

According to SARdonyx, between 1 July 2023 and 30 June 2024, there were 2,313 land-based SAR incidents. Five of the most common land-based activities resulting in a SAR incident were Tramper, Day Walker, People with cognitive impairment, Persons in mental distress and Hunter. Together, these activities made up over 53 percent of all land-based SAR incidents. However, the same five activities took more than 68 percent of the 51,040 total hours spent on land-based SAR incidents.

During the same period, just over 7 percent of SAR incidents for people with congitive impairment were resolved thanks to a WanderTrack radio location device worn by the subject person. However, for most SAR incidents for people with cognitive impairment, or in mental distress, emergency communication devices were either not carried or not used by the subject person.

The Land Recreation Quarterly Survey carried out between 1 June 2023 and 12 March 2024, indicated that 40 percent of Trampers regularly took an emergency communication device. The proportion was 33 percent for Hunters and only 5 percent for Day Walkers*.

Together, the data suggests that most individuals doing an activity that is one of the most common for SAR incidents are not carrying an emergency communications device. This reinforces that a significant proportion of land-based SAR responses are conducted using fundamental search methods. Developing and maintaining a high level of responder capability in these fundamental methods is essential to finding a large proportion of those lost, missing and injured.

Graph data source: SARdonyx, between 1 July 2023 to 30 June 2024

*Although these rates of beacon carriage may seem small, New Zealand has the highest per-capita ownership of beacons in the world, according to the Maritime New Zealand Rescue Coordination Centre.

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This story was originally published in the December 2024 issue of Link magazine, which is produced by the NZSAR Secretariat for the wider search and rescue sector.