Ground Search and Rescue hosting mock exercise in Bonshaw Provincial Park

Training officer says exercises help familiarize volunteers with terrain they'll cover in real emergencies

Image | Prince Edward Island Ground Search and Rescue/Facebook

Caption: Training officer Frances Gertsch says volunteers train across the Island in order to be prepared for a real emergency. (Prince Edward Island Ground Search and Rescue/Facebook)

P.E.I. Ground Search and Rescue volunteers will conduct a training exercise on Sunday at Bonshaw Provincial Park.
The mock search and rescue starts at 11 a.m. and runs until 5 p.m.
Frances Gertsch, a training officer with GSAR, says these exercises help improve techniques, but also give volunteers valuable experience in places they may have to cover in a real emergency.
"We train from tip to tip and from coast to coast … because we could respond anywhere on the Island," she said.

Image | P.E.I. GSAR

Caption: The GSAR team is a volunteer, non-profit organization with about 100 volunteer members who are on-call for search and rescue efforts. (Alison Jenkins/CBC)

Gertsch says about 40 volunteers wearing orange will be in the area Sunday along with a number of vehicles including volunteers' cars and trailers.
The GSAR team is a volunteer, non-profit organization with about 100 volunteer members who are on-call for search and rescue efforts 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.