Wanaka was chosen for the first time as the venue for the New Zealand Mountain Safety Council’s (MSC) Search and Rescue (SAR) seminar which was held yesterday (Tuesday May 25) at the Lake Wānaka Centre and at Wanaka’s SAR base on Ballantyne Road.

The seminar was an opportunity to bring professional alpine and avalanche SAR responders and volunteers together to share knowledge and to connect and collaborate in a learning environment, MSC operations manager Nathan Watson said.  

“It feels really nice being able to run these sessions underneath the shadow of the mountains,” he said.

The seminar attracted 91 attendees from all the alpine regions around the country.

Nathan said it was a great turnout: “We were at maximum capacity and couldn’t have accommodated any more people.” 

The day began with a brief update on LandSAR’s web-based resources, followed by the key presentation on volcanic risk assessment by Ruapehu Alpine Rescue Organisation’s Nico Fournier, focusing on all the factors needed to deploy staff into an environment after a volcanic eruption.

The attendees then relocated to Wanaka SAR HQ for five hands-on workshops covering a variety of subjects, from technical ropework and the evolution of SAR technology to how to incorporate search dogs in a search plan.

Yesterday the MSC also hosted in Wanaka the annual New Zealand Avalanche Advisory pre-season training session. Around 24 MSC avalanche forecasters from each of the alpine regions attended the one day gathering in preparation for the new winter season. 

The SAR seminar preceded the two-day Southern Hemisphere Alpine Conference (SHAC), usually held in Christchurch, which began this morning and finishes tomorrow (May 26-27).

Nathan said Wanaka was selected this year because many of the alpine and avalanche professionals attracted to the seminar and conference are based in this southern area. 

“It’s been a tough 18 months under Covid for many so we thought we’d bring the events closer to them and make it as affordable as possible,” he said.

While the MSC facilitates these conferences and seminars, support and the funding for these biennial events is provided by New Zealand Search and Rescue, Nathan said.

PHOTO: NZ Mountain Safety Council.