Equipment

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A limited amount of equipment currently exists within Australia to support USAR operations. The capability deficit is currently being addressed by the Commonwealth in conjunction with all States and Territories.

Within a taskforce, the following broad types of equipment will exist.

Search   
Technical equipment used for searching for trapped persons such as cameras.

Access / breaching 
Equipment used to cut concrete and other types of heavy building materials so access can be made to trapped persons.

Lifting and stabilising equipment 
Equipment used to lift heavy building materials and hold it in place while searches are conducted.

Hot cutting equipment 
Equipment that can be used to cut metal building materials.

Shoring  
This is usually large amounts of timber that is cut to size and used to hold buildings in place while rescuers work within them.

Vertical rescue  
Ropes and other associated equipment used to allow rescues to work in vertical environments.

Hand tools
Including tools to cut wood, metal and masonry and assorted other tools

Safety / hazmat
Equipment used to ensure the safety of rescuers and to monitor for hazardous materials.

Personal equipment
This is equipment used for rescuers and includes a working kit, a field response pack and a Personal kit that can last for 10 days for a taskforce.

Administrative 
This equipment is essential to ensure a USAR taskforce is self sufficient and includes computers, printer’s photocopiers and cameras.
Team equipment

Communications 
This equipment is essential to ensure a taskforce can communicate within its own area of operations and communicate with other Emergency Services.

This information provided has been developed in conjunction with the National Urban Search and Rescue Working Group