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The process of ending a search operation can be viewed as either suspending or terminating it.

If a subject is found the process is very straight forward and the mission can be said to be terminated once all the formalities have been finalised.

However, if the subject has not been found we are faced with the decision as to when and how to end the operation. We never use the word ‘terminate’ in such a case. We ‘suspend’ the search.

Every search manager will at some stage be faced with the decision and responsibility of suspending the mission when the subject has not been located. It is one of the hardest decisions a search manager will ever have to make.

“The act of suspension is simple – a short message is broadcast over the radio net. But the process of arriving at that verdict is one of the hardest and most important decisions that the search manager will ever make.”

Tim J Setnicka – Wilderness Search and Rescue, 1980

There are two main questions to ask:

1.         Is the subject alive or deceased?

2.         Have all the sectors in the search area been searched and re-searched?

Four Considerations

1.         What is the chance of the subject still being alive?

2.         What is the assessment of the search area sector POD?

3.         Consider searcher safety

4.         Family and political pressures

Factors to Evaluate in consideration

The decision to suspend an operation will involve a combination of these factors.

If the search manager has maintained a full documentary record of the search operation then he/she will be able to justify his actions on a purely effectiveness versus effort basis.

Every search operation is different and every one will require a decision based on the facts and circumstances of that mission. There is no ‘generic’ suspension list.

Decision Making

The overhead team will have to meet to discuss possible suspension. They will have to agree a group consensus in much the same way as in reaching a scenario or POA consensus.

At this meeting the search manager will discuss any further matters to be done to complete the mission. There may be one area, for instance, that may not yet have a high enough cumulative POD and which needs to be re-searched with a different resource. Bearing in mind this meeting is being held to discuss suspension there should be very little left to do except, perhaps, to tie up a few loose ends.

Those present will be told what has been completed, the cumulative POD’s and overall POS’s in the search area. The progress of the search, any clues found, other information and the investigation process will be summarised and other factors such as searcher safety, weather and any other relevant information whatsoever will be discussed.

Possible future options will then be identified at this meeting and a plan will be established to finalise any outstanding actions which will be allotted time scale objectives.

The demobilisation plan will also be finalised.

Options on how to continue the search or to re-mobilise it will be discussed shortly.

Relatives

At all times during the search the relatives should be kept informed as to the progress and strategy. Best practice now suggests family liaison officers should be appointed should a search continue into second and more operational periods. For more sensitive cases such as lost children an immediate appointment of this position would seem appropriate. Any decision to suspend a search should not come as any great surprise for an informed relative, even if not agreed or content with the decision.

The degree of involvement of the relatives in the conduct of the search operation will be decided by the search manager. His experience will assist in agreeing the level of involvement in the fine details of the search. The family will not be actively involved in search strategy and tactics but there may be good reasons for advising them of procedures and progress. The more they understand about the process and efforts then the more they will understand the inevitable reason to suspend a search should the subject not be located.

Experience has shown that the family are comforted by being able to be ‘involved’ in the search, such as visiting the search base and seeing the efforts of all those involved. It is common for the family to actually go out into the field to search themselves. This is difficult for the search manager as there will be the potential for evidence to be missed and destroyed.

The search probability theory could be explained to them so they understand why we are searching in a particular area and why we don’t search in others. Obviously an assessment will have to be made of the likely response of the family to some of these suggestions. If, for instance, we tell them of the low survivability rate of certain categories of subject, while this helps our decision making process it may well cause enormous distress to the family. The family liaison officer has been trained in dealing with sensitive issues and his/her advice should be sought.

However much the family are kept informed, for understandable reasons, they may still not be happy or content about a suspension and may bring pressure on the search manager to continue.

Political and Media Pressure

Such pressure is common on more high profile search operations and can come from a variety of sources:

Such external influences and pressures are not uncommon and all search managers have probably experienced this at some time in their lives or careers. Sometimes the pressure will be passed down from local or national government to senior police officers. The senior officers will want to be satisfied that the search operation has been conducted satisfactorily before they can reply to those ‘above’ them. This is fair enough. The ultimate responsibility rests with the police, after all.

The search manager must stick to his guns. He/she is the expert and will have to explain processes to those exerting pressures. Again, if full documentary evidence has been maintained then such justification is easier and difficult to contradict. This is part of the job of the search manager and should be expected.

As an example if the search manager can show to his senior officer that the overall probability of success for the whole search area has been calculated to be, say, 97%, then the extra effort of several thousand man-hours searching to raise this to 98% will be very difficult to sanction.

The search manager will also be able to advise the senior officer that although the search may be suspended, it has not been terminated, as can be seen in the following section:

Limited Continuous Search

A search operation which has been suspended because the subject has not been located is never really closed. There are a number of methods to continue the search such as:

Overflights

The air crew are asked to over fly the area on an intermittent basis or perhaps when going to another task. This way should there be changes in vegetation, say, then there is a slight chance something may be seen.

Investigation

The investigation process will continue and any further information obtained will be acted upon.

Weather/Terrain changes

Should weather conditions improve or change, such as a snow covering melts or it is safer for searchers to re-start a search then this can be considered. Also in an area of dense vegetation and tree cover a search in the winter may be considered when the POD is higher. Obviously this would be a case of body recovery only.

Signs

Signs may be posted in the area informing the public that someone is missing in the locality.

Media

Use the media to inform the public of what has occurred.

Training

The search area could be used for training exercises for search teams and dogs, for example. Search techniques and methods could be practiced. This has to be done somewhere so why not at the scen of a previous incident?

If we adopt the ‘limited continuous search’ we suspend the mission but not the search. The search is continued, albeit on a very limited basis and the case is still open.

This indicates to the family that we have not given up and that we are able and willing to take further additional action should further information come to light. Beware the distressed family grasping at straws and providing information to try and force us to re-commence the search. This is not a malicious act on their part but a sign of desperation and will have to be handled with tact.

Whatever is decided – document it

After the mission ensure all documents and evidence is collated. It should be summarised and stored in such a way that the search can be recommenced at any time by someone else, if necessary, and that it is readily available and capable of being presented to an enquiry.

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