Civil Air Patrol's Pennsylvania Wing was called on to assist in the search for three Boy Scouts and a Scout leader in Woodward Township after they were reported missing since 4 p.m. Nov. 19.
Some 43 CAP members searched through the night and were ready to launch aircraft at daybreak. They joined state police, a K9 unit and several fire departments in looking for the the area north of Lock Haven along Route 664 in Clinton County in north central Pennsylvania.
The Scouts and their leader were found alive and well by members of the Haneyville Police Department. The Air Force Rescue Coordination Center credited CAP with the assist.CAP News Online: Pa. Wing members assist in successful search for missing Scouts, leader
:: Sending CAP Cadets (I know that PAWG teams are pretty Cadet heavy.) to go find Boy Scouts... I couldn't help but chuckle at that one. (sorry! I'm going to hell! I know that!) Sure, it wouldn't be funny if someone had been hurt... but nobody was injured, so I'm going to have to go ahead and make fun of them.
All kidding aside, good on the Scouts for taking shelter in a small shack.
One lesson to be learned here is that night ground search is an important skill that should be taught and practiced by CAP Ground Teams.
My team all complete G649: GROUND SEARCH AND RESCUE which is a two day course (16 contact hours) that our State recognizes for certification. Then of course we regularly exercise the skill in the field. (Once or twice a year us usually enough to stay proficient.) A portion of the field training part of the course is taught at night.
If I was the CAP Ground Team Leader, I may have been tempted to hand the Boy Scouts CAP recruiting brochures when they were all back at the mission base sipping hot chocolate.
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