Alberta Receives Over $2M Grant to Improve Provincial Search and Rescue

The federal government has announced over $2 million to improve the Search and Rescue Association of Alberta (SAR Alberta) operations in the province.

SAR Alberta will reportedly receive a total of $2,075,919 from Public Safety Canada’s Search and Rescue New Initiatives Fund (SAR NIF). The fund will be used to improve and further professionalize SAR teams across Alberta by building a new governance framework, accreditation and certification for SAR personnel, reports CBC.

“Like most search and rescue operations, SAR Alberta relies on volunteers to conduct their life-saving work, and this funding will help enhance safety standards and accreditation for all personnel”, said Bill Blair, Minister of Emergency Preparedness during the announcement.

“This fund helps advance and innovate research and rescue across Canada as search becomes more complex than ever, and especially in light of increasingly frequent and severe climate-related extreme weather events”, said Blair.

The Vice President of Search and Rescue Association of Alberta, Doug Ritchie said the fund is “key to making SAR Alberta more effective, adding consistent training across different teams in Alberta.”

SAR Alberta is comprised of 33 SAR organizations across the province overseeing, over 1400 volunteers.