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Richard Piatt Reporting Technology is making avalanche rescues faster in Europe, and now that same equipment is here in Utah.
Today, search and rescue crews from Utah ski resorts demonstrated a device that could save lives this winter.
When you're buried in snow, seconds count. And this equipment is all about saving time. 'Helicopter-based long range receivers' hone in on avalanche beacon from above.
Helicopters are essential in avalanche rescues. But a search from the air is limited to what the eye can see. This antenna, a dangling long range receiver, goes deeper. It finds a buried avalanche beacon signal and narrows the search.
Dean Cardinale, Wasatch Backcountry Rescue: "From a rescue standpoint this is huge, and we're really excited about it."
Inside the helicopter, the antenna is attached to a receiver. The faster the beeps, the closer the victim's transceiver.
Manuel Genswein, System Trainer: "The closer we get to the buried subject we reduce the sensitivity of the system, so smaller is the area we take into account."
Once the spot is narrowed down, a weighted flag is dropped. The ground searchers can then probe a specific area.
This training exercise located a transceiver much more quickly than a traditional search.
Pat Kramer, Alta Ski Patrol: "You saw they dropped the flag from the helicopter. That narrowed the search to about 10 yards. That's a lot better than what we normally start with."
In an avalanche, partner rescues are always faster. On November 14th, a friend saved a man buried by an avalanche in Little Cottonwood Canyon. It's not always possible to have that kind of help.
In the case of a blind search, it could normally take hours. But now, technology increases the odds of a successful rescue in the backcountry.
There is still no substitute for being prepared--and trained. Even this new technology won't work, if someone's not wearing an avalanche beacon.
