What is Serbia Mountain Rescue Service?

Mountain Rescue Service is voluntary and unprofitable organization driven primarily by the cause of helping and rescuing endangered or injured people from difficult, mountain and urban environment. Our skilled and equipped rescuers are the last resort and hope for people in need. We take our role in cases when relevant civil and military instances have no more solutions.

Mountain Rescue Service is a specific and elite part of the Mountaineering Association of Serbia. Mountain rescue service was founded in 1953 as a part of climbing and alpinist division. At that time, the main goal was to rescue people from high mountain and rock environment. Organization, members, equipment and techniques of Mountain Rescue Squad were very much the same as of that similar organization and services throughout Europe 's Alpine region. In late 70's it was realized that mountaineering conditions and activities in Serbia are not that similar to Alps . Consequently there were significant modifications of concepts and principles referring to the structure of the Mountain Rescue Squad and the rescuer profile.

Today, Mountain Rescue Service specializes in performing rescue actions in high mountains, rock, caves, skiing centers and urban environment, in every condition. Our service numbers about 150 active members at this time. Our members are experienced mountaineers, climbers, alpinists, speleologists, skiers, scuba divers, paraglidists, etc., who are most influential in their basic mountaineering associations. During all these years of our rescue work we gained recognition for devotion, courage and efficiency judged by people in need who were satisfied by our service. Therefore at the present, Mountain Rescue Service is a specific trademark of Serbian mountaineering and all other related activities. Consequently, our appearance is always noted and appreciated.

The top decision making level of our service is the Commission for mountain rescue service that is constituted within the Mountaineering Association of Serbia and Montenegro. Mission and main goals of this Commission are: strategical planning; resource allocation; synchronization and coordination of lower level activities; managing the matters of coordination with civil defense and other relevant subjects; education, training and development of rescue service as well as the public relations.

Basically, Mountain Rescue Service is organized through regional centers. Mountain Rescue Squad is the main tactical and operational unit of the service in general. Mountain Rescue Squad is the only functional instance and the core of organizing and performing rescue action within one region.

In order to achieve the main goals of its service, Mountain Rescue Service realizes the following tasks:

• Participation in creation and testing of new samples of rescue equipment as well as examination and introduction of new and improved rescue methods and techniques.
• Working out theoretical and hypothetical problems of search, rescue and survival of people in emergencies.
• Media and public relations that includes informing and affirming on the subject of safe mountaineering, as well as consultations of people and authorities on the matter of safety guaranteeing and behavior in urban and mountain disasters.
• Ecological activities and protection of our mountains.
• Constant training, educating and equipping of rescuers, rescue teams and rescue squads.
• Working out procedures and coordination with relevant subjects in accomplishing high speed and high quality rescue operations. These subjects are the local authorities, regional civil defense headquarters, Ministry of the interior and the military.
• Cooperation with foreign rescue and other relevant organizations. This cooperation especially refers to matters of experience exchange, joined training and operations, advanced methods of search and rescue, new safety and rescue equipment, etc.

Our database contains a list of all mountain rescue members in MRS (with all their relevant informations), all past injuries on Kopaonik mountain as well as all finished actions (speleology, alpinism ...) since 1996.
The most important data that shows us the seriousness of Mountain Rescue Squad's work are:

• In past 20 years, members of Mountain Rescue Squad took care of over 5000 injuries.
• Our members are involved in about 8-12 search and rescue operations in a year, mostly in heavy forests on Kopaonik Mountain , but also on all other arias all over Serbia.

Only a few the most relevant rescues will be mentioned here:

• Great search and rescue operation after earthquake in Skopje , Macedonia .
• Rescuing miners from Ibar mines.
• Rescuing people from a plane crash on Babin zub. (Mountain Rescue Squad from Niksic , PD Javorak)
• Search and rescue for people endangered in 1999 Yugoslavia bombing by Nato.
• Evacuation of deceased mountaineers and alpinists from Prokletije and Zijevo mountains.
• Rescuing survivors and taking out bodies of dead speleologists from Cave of Ravanica, May 2007.