Voters to decide search and rescue levy

Voters will have a chance to decide whether to fully fund both the Swan Valley and Lake County Search and Rescue operations on the November ballot, which, if passed, would provide a substantial amount of operating money for the two agencies.

The two-mil levy would represent about $110,000 annually to be split between the two groups, and would go a long way in providing ample funding to help the groups, county search and rescue head Sgt. Wade Nash said.

The problem comes from the fact that the Sheriff's budget is being stretched so much over recent years that funding for volunteer groups like the search and rescue crews has fallen by the wayside, Nash said, while demands for their services have risen substantially.

"The search and rescue organizations have been neglected as far as funding goes, while the amount of calls we get has gone up due to population increases and the amount of recreation opportunities available here," Nash said.

Currently, both groups get about $10,000 a year, which goes straight to workers compensation insurance to cover the men and women who work on the crews while they are performing search and rescue and recovery operations, Nash said.

If passed, the levy would represent about $6.44 per year on a home with a taxable value of $100,000. A home's taxable value differs from its market value.

The good news is that folks have responded, increasing the number of volunteers from five just a few years ago to about 50, but without proper training and equipment, it doesn't do much good, Nash said.

"Trying to train that many people is hard. You need to supply them with training to make it worth their time, and for them to be able to help," he said. "Equipping our volunteers and training them is the biggest need."

He cited the situation last winter when two Missoula men were hurt in the Mission Mountains, and had to be rescued in part by ice climbers from the Flathead search and rescue group. Having training money available would increase the number of people living here with the technical know-how to help in those situations, instead of relying on outside agencies, Nash explained.

"We just don't have the funding for technical training like that," he said.

In addition to training, the money would be used for GPS locators, better radios, and other much-needed equipment, Nash said.

Despite a lack of funding, the groups have benefited from community support, which Nash said has been very helpful. Most recently, a woman donated a 19-foot boat that can be used in water recovery operations, while others are having their dogs trained to help, too, Nash noted.

The county's search and rescue group has one newer truck available for use, but the Swan group is using a vehicle made in 1977, Nash said.

As more and more people move to the area, all drawn to the availability of recreation activities like boating, fishing, hunting, hiking and camping, the need for an effective group of volunteers has increased dramatically, Nash said.

Currently, about 50 percent of the groups' calls are related to water rescue and recovery, while the other half involves locating hunters, hikers and other outdoor rec enthusiasts, Nash said.