teams continued to come and go, checking in and out. They turned in their assignments, debriefed and received new search tasks that would take them back out on the trails of the park.
As Sarah reached the steps to the command unit, she could hear a heated discussion in progress. She thought she heard Dave’s voice intertwined in the conversation. She could distinctly hear the commander of the dive team. “She’s an inexperienced dog handler. She has no idea what she’s talking about! We’ve covered that area thoroughly.” The dive team was used to being in control and running water searches in this county. The pit in her stomach grew.
Park rangers and the local police agencies would oversee land searches but generally would concede water search management to the dive team. The lieutenant was the incident commander for this event due to it being both land and water without eyewitnesses. Although the lieutenant had deferred the majority of the management of the water coverage to the dive team, she was still running the show. The dive team was not used to having management involved. Personalities, egos and strategies were clashing.
Sarah surprised herself. She smiled as she entered the unit. All of this is because of my team and my dogs, she thought . She was beginning to find the day’s events almost humorous. If the situation wasn’t such a serious setting, she would have laughed out loud. Normally she didn’t like to draw attention. When Sarah stepped into the hallway of the unit, all conversation abruptly halted and everyone turned to look at her.
“It’s about time you made your way over here,” the lieutenant stated.
Sarah looked from the lieutenant’s face to Dave and then to the two dive team members. She had wanted to keep control of this whole situation in the hands of the dive team commander and try and persuade him to take her and one of her dogs out on the lake, but he had already anticipated the dog team’s next move and faced the lieutenant, demanding it was not necessary. They knew Sarah would go above their head. She had already proven early in the day that she didn’t follow search protocol when she’d let her dog lead her to the boat.
Sarah couldn’t help thinking the dive team commander had an ulterior agenda. Did they view her as a threat? Was he thinking it might make the dive team look bad if a dog located the body in an area they had already searched? She almost felt like she was playing a game of Risk, and instead of being first-responder resources that should work together toward a common goal, it seemed as if they were fighting for turf.
Sarah pulled the paperwork which included her map, notes and task assignment out of her BDU pants pocket. Unfolding the pieces of paper, she handed them to the lieutenant. “This is the area we covered,” she began and pointed to the tattered map. The rest of the occupants stood back with their arms crossed in a defensive manner except Dave. They remained quiet for the moment. Sarah continued giving details of her search task and how her dog behaved. Where and when Sam had first gotten scent, his body language right up to where he entered the water and started barking. She was nervous. Flashes of her childhood and dealing with authorities crept into her thoughts. Stop it, she forced herself, this is different.
The lieutenant began to question Sarah. “Are you positive your dog had human scent? Can you guarantee the dogs can pinpoint where the body is? The dive team doesn’t believe we should be wasting time or any resources covering that area again.”
“Yes, I am positive that Sam hit on human scent. No, I can’t guarantee anything. But I do feel strongly that we should follow up on this lead.” Sarah answered with an air of certainty. The dive team commander rolled his eyes and turned away from the conversation with a huff.
“So what would be your next step if this was up to you? How would you run your search strategy if you wanted
As Sarah reached the steps to the command unit, she could hear a heated discussion in progress. She thought she heard Dave’s voice intertwined in the conversation. She could distinctly hear the commander of the dive team. “She’s an inexperienced dog handler. She has no idea what she’s talking about! We’ve covered that area thoroughly.” The dive team was used to being in control and running water searches in this county. The pit in her stomach grew.
Park rangers and the local police agencies would oversee land searches but generally would concede water search management to the dive team. The lieutenant was the incident commander for this event due to it being both land and water without eyewitnesses. Although the lieutenant had deferred the majority of the management of the water coverage to the dive team, she was still running the show. The dive team was not used to having management involved. Personalities, egos and strategies were clashing.
Sarah surprised herself. She smiled as she entered the unit. All of this is because of my team and my dogs, she thought . She was beginning to find the day’s events almost humorous. If the situation wasn’t such a serious setting, she would have laughed out loud. Normally she didn’t like to draw attention. When Sarah stepped into the hallway of the unit, all conversation abruptly halted and everyone turned to look at her.
“It’s about time you made your way over here,” the lieutenant stated.
Sarah looked from the lieutenant’s face to Dave and then to the two dive team members. She had wanted to keep control of this whole situation in the hands of the dive team commander and try and persuade him to take her and one of her dogs out on the lake, but he had already anticipated the dog team’s next move and faced the lieutenant, demanding it was not necessary. They knew Sarah would go above their head. She had already proven early in the day that she didn’t follow search protocol when she’d let her dog lead her to the boat.
Sarah couldn’t help thinking the dive team commander had an ulterior agenda. Did they view her as a threat? Was he thinking it might make the dive team look bad if a dog located the body in an area they had already searched? She almost felt like she was playing a game of Risk, and instead of being first-responder resources that should work together toward a common goal, it seemed as if they were fighting for turf.
Sarah pulled the paperwork which included her map, notes and task assignment out of her BDU pants pocket. Unfolding the pieces of paper, she handed them to the lieutenant. “This is the area we covered,” she began and pointed to the tattered map. The rest of the occupants stood back with their arms crossed in a defensive manner except Dave. They remained quiet for the moment. Sarah continued giving details of her search task and how her dog behaved. Where and when Sam had first gotten scent, his body language right up to where he entered the water and started barking. She was nervous. Flashes of her childhood and dealing with authorities crept into her thoughts. Stop it, she forced herself, this is different.
The lieutenant began to question Sarah. “Are you positive your dog had human scent? Can you guarantee the dogs can pinpoint where the body is? The dive team doesn’t believe we should be wasting time or any resources covering that area again.”
“Yes, I am positive that Sam hit on human scent. No, I can’t guarantee anything. But I do feel strongly that we should follow up on this lead.” Sarah answered with an air of certainty. The dive team commander rolled his eyes and turned away from the conversation with a huff.
“So what would be your next step if this was up to you? How would you run your search strategy if you wanted
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