Search and rescue is the Jeep Posse’s primary mission and can be truly the most rewarding. Whether it be for a missing toddler strayed away from home, a hunter who is overdue, or someone that hasn’t returned from a hike in the desert, we get the call!

Throughout the southwest, the Sheriff’s Office is the primary agency tasked for performing Search and Rescue (called SAR) operations. . Western law enforcement has used the assistance of volunteers since territorial days to track down bandits or to look for lost people.  These volunteers were formed into a group called a posse.  Along the way, the Jeep Posse was created (in 1955).

When the call comes in that someone needs help, we hit the road. The Jeepers are generally the first to respond to a missing or lost person. The reason is simple, we keep our vehicles stocked with the necessary equipment and supplies to respond immediately and the Jeep Posse is experienced in off-road operations.. In other words we can get there the quickest with the mostest! All members of the Jeep Posse are required to attend the State SAR Academy and periodically attend practice searches in order to hone their skills.

Once on scene of a search, Jeep Posse duties usually begin with conducting what is called a “hasty search”.  We run the roads, jeep trails, washes looking in all the obvious places.  Frequently that is all that is required to find the missing person.  If the person is not found, a more detailed search is then conducted using horses, dog teams, ATVs and ground trackers (a.k.a. the “groundpounders”).  At this point the Jeep Posse moves in more of a support role.  We drop off/pick up ground personnel,  perform supply runs on extended searches, act as a radio relay between the command post and ground teams, and setup/maintain the search perimeter to interview anyone leaving and to keep the public out of the search area.  When the person is found, the Jeep Posse is often called to transport the victim out to an evacuation location.

One of the greatest rewards in Search & Rescue is the feeling that you are truly making a difference in someone’s life and the thanks that you receive when you reunite a person with their family and loved ones.