Emergency Response Team and SAR

An emergency is a situation that occurred outside normal conditions and could be caused by either human activity or natural occurrences that could lead to jeopardizing human life, damaging properties, and destruction of the environment. 

The “nature” of an emergency is hard to predict. Even more, time is essential in handling emergency situations. Hence, immediate, efficient, and effective actions need to be taken. 

Mishandling emergency situations could lead to the loss of human life, damaged properties, and destruction of the environment that could have been mitigated or even prevented. 

Hence, a good security management system design needs to include guidance in handling emergency situations to mitigate or prevent its effects.

In Nawakara, not only do we include guidance in handling emergency situations in our security management system design, but we also have our own Emergency Response Team that has helped handle emergency situations across Indonesia. 

Even more, in 2022, we became the only security company in Indonesia that is mandated and officially appointed by Basarnas (Indonesia’s national agency task in the implementation of search and rescue activity in Indonesia) to hold SAR training in which the participants will be given SAR certifications directly by Basarnas. 

So, the role of Nawakara’s Emergency Response Team in the broader search and rescue system could be more easily understood. 

Search and Rescue in the International Scene

Referring to the Basarnas’ website, the establishment of Indonesia’s SAR organization is partly due to the “demand” of the international world. Where a country that doesn’t have a SAR organization will be considered as a “black area”. 

Countries that are considered as a “black area” will lead to negative impact on its economic, socio-politics, security, safety aspects, among other things. 

Furthermore, in 1950 and 1959, Indonesia joined the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and International Maritime Organization (IMO), respectively. 

The ICAO functions primarily to codify international flight principles and technique and to encourage the planning and development of international air transport to ensure a safe and organized growth. 

While the IMO functions primarily to set measures to enhance international shipping safety and security and to prevent pollution caused by it. 

In relation to SAR, these two specialized UN agencies required its member states to have a SAR organization through the Chicago Convention of 1944 (ICAO) and the SOLAS Convention of 1974 (IMO). 

IAMSAR Manual and the Global SAR System

In November 1999, the International Aeronautical and Maritime Search and Rescue (IAMSAR) Manual was first published by the ICAO and IMO. 

It is intended to be a guide for the ICAO and IMO member states in meeting their SAR requirements while also fulfilling their obligations as member states. Furthermore, the IAMSAR Manual is also intended to provide guidelines for a common aviation and maritime approach to organizing and providing SAR services. 

The IAMSAR Manual is divided into three volumes:

• Organization and Management (Volume 1): The first volume of the IAMSAR Manual discusses the global SAR system concept, establishment and improvement of national and regional SAR systems and co-operation with neighboring States to provide effective and economical SAR services.
• Mission Coordination (Volume 2): The second volume of the IAMSAR Manual is written to assist personnel who plan and coordinate SAR operations and exercises. 
• Mobile Facilities (Volume 3): The last volume of the IAMSAR Manual is intended to be carried aboard rescue units, aircraft, and vessels to help with performance of a search, rescue, or on-scene coordinator function, and with aspects of SAR that pertain to their own emergencies. 

Each of the IAMSAR volumes was written with specific SAR systems in mind. So, it could be use separately or in conjunction with the other two volumes to achieve a comprehensive view of the SAR system. 

Global Scale SAR System

For short, the ICAO and IMO intended to provide an effective SAR system globally. This is related to the basic, practical, and humanitarian characteristics of global SAR aspects. Where SAR services should help anyone that needed it regardless of their nationality. 

As any other system, the components within the SAR system needed to collaborate to provide the overall service. Several of the SAR system key components are:

• Communication
• Rescue coordination centers and sub-centers
• Operational and support facilities
• On-Scene coordinator

The Emergency Phase

When first notified of an emergency, the Rescue Coordination Center (RCC), Rescue Sub-centre (RSC) or the Air Traffic Services (ATC) needed to set the emergency phase. 

There are three emergency phases, that are:

• Uncertainty phase (INCERFA): The uncertainty phase is when there is information regarding the situation regarding aircraft/ship security conditions that need to be monitored or further information is required.
• Alert Phase (ALERFA): A phase that occurs when an aircraft, ship, other craft, or persons on board are having difficulty and may need assistance but are not in immediate danger. 
• Distress Phase (DETRESFA): The distress phase occurs when there is reasonable certainty that an aircraft, ship, other craft, or persons on board is in danger and requires immediate assistance. 

Basarnas and the SAR System of Indonesia

National Search and Rescue Agency (Indonesian: Badan Nasional Pencarian dan Pertolongan) is a government agency that is primarily tasked to assist the President in the implementation of search and rescue activity in Indonesia. 

Note: Basarnas is an abbreviation of Badan Search and Rescue Nasional (the name of this government agency prior to its change in 2016). Though the actual name of the agency has changed, the abbreviation of its old name is still commonly used. 

As previously mentioned, the establishment of Basarnas is one of the obligations of Indonesia as state members of the ICAO and IMO. 

SAR System of Indonesia

In reference to the Basarnas website, the SAR system in Indonesian is an adoption of the regulations that were mandatory for all state members of ICAO and IMO. 

There are five components in the SAR system of Indonesia, that are:

• Organization: SAR organization structure include element deployment, command and control, authority, scope of assignment and responsibilities in disaster management. 

• Communication: Means to detect disaster, operation command and control function and coordination during SAR operation. 

• Facilities: Element component, equipment and gears and supporting facilities that will be able to be used in SAR operation or mission

• Emergency Help: Provision of equipment or a mandatory emergency treatment facility on-scene that will be used until a more sufficient facility is available. 

• Documentation: Data collection report, data analysis and SAR operation capabilities data collection for future SAR mission purposes.

Nawakara’s Emergency Response Team

Disclaimer: As per writing this article, there is no official [English] translation of the regulations that will be referred to in this article. All translations were provided by the writer of this article. 

The establishment of Nawakara’s Emergency Response Team is based on Law Number 29 of 2014 on Search and Rescue included in:

 Article 38 section 1

“Every person that have Search and Rescue Potential (Potensi Pencarian dan Pertolongan) is obliged to fulfill and assist in Search and Rescue Operation Execution (Pelaksanaan Operasi Pencarian dan Pertolongan) upon the request of the National Search and Rescue Agency.”

Article 80 section 1

“To improve the implementation of Search and Rescue optimally, the community could participate in the implementation of Search and Rescue.”

Article 81

“Participation as referred to in article 80 could be done individually, in groups, professional organizations, business entities, and/or community organizations.”

Throughout 2020-2021, our Emergency Response Team has helped handling our clients (both national and multinational companies), and emergency situations that happened in Indonesia, such disaster victim evacuation of earthquake in Palu, fires impact (smoke disasters) in Palembang, flood victims in Jakarta, and flood victims in Hulu Sungai Tengah Regency and Kota Banjarbaru in South Kalimantan.

Our Emergency Response Team has 34 Basarnas certified personnel that have good ability to coordinate and communicate with every stakeholder in Indonesia. 

All personnel were trained to handle disaster management, including evacuation process such as, but not limited to:

• Flood evacuation
• Fire evacuation 
• Forest and volcanic eruption evacuation
• Riot (huru-hara) evacuation

In an evacuation process, two things that our Emergency Response Team do to help the victims are:

1. Emergency Evacuation: Assisting people from a potentially life-threatening place to a safer place such as a safe house or hospital. 
2. Security Escort: Escort done by our personnel to disaster/accident victims with the purpose of maintaining their calm on their way to a safer place. 

Full services of our Emergency Response Team include:

1. Manpower provision in the location
2. Emergency call to perform evacuation
3. Training related to disaster management (such as Basic Open Mining, Medical Rescue, etc.)

On the 8th of August 2022, Nawakara received the visitation of Basarnas’ Director of Potential Development (Direktur Bina Potensi), Drs. Mochammad Hernanto, MM, that was followed by the visitation of Moh. Barokna Haulah, S.S. as the Deputy of Resource Development and Search and Rescue Potential (Deputi Bina Tenaga dan Potensi Pencarian dan Pertolongan) on the 24th of September 2022 in Training Center Nawakara, South Tangerang. 

Those visitations were done to check on the facilities of Training Center Nawakara that was planned to be used by Basarnas to hold trainings for SAR potentials from government institutions such as the Indonesian Army (TNI), Indonesian National Police (Polri), and non-government organizations that is part of the 2022 work program.

Participants of this training would later be given certificates directly from Basarnas. 

Do you want to know more about Nawkara’s Emergency Response Team? Feel free to contact us through this link.