Southern Arizona Rescue Association

SARA provides volunteer search and rescue services and is a vital link in the education of the community regarding safety issues involved in recreational land use.

Organization and Mission Programs

SARA is a volunteer, search and rescue organization serving all of Southern Arizona since 1958. All of its members from the president, to the newest candidate, are volunteers from all walks of life who give freely of their time and enthusiasm to provide what they consider to be a vital service to the people of Southern Arizona. We have no paid staff. SARA members have extensive training and expertise in all aspects of search and rescue work including: wilderness search, high-angle and technical rescue, confined space (cave and mine) rescue, swift water rescue, outdoor safety education.

SARA members are certified in Outdoor Emergency Care (OEC) which provides for patient treatment, stabilization and transport.  Without SARA, the community would lack the ability to locate and rescue individuals who are lost, ill, or injured from outdoor settings and safely transport them to emergency vehicles.

Operating Programs

SARA provides its services to those in need at no charge. We are called out by the Pima County Sheriff’s Office, although we are not a part of that department and receive only minimal financial support from it. We are on call 24 hours per day, seven days a week and report for operations at any time of the year. We are called upon an average of twice per week making us one of the busiest search and rescue groups on the country. Our operations occur in terrain ranging from mountains to desert. Members are continually trained to improve their skills and are required to periodically demonstrate their medical and technical proficiency to maintain their qualifications. Members provide their own personal equipment at their expense. Group assets including two vehicles, radios, and technical gear are paid for entirely out of donations from individuals and corporations primarily in our local community. In addition to search and rescue services, SARA also provides public education presentations to both adult and children upon request. SARA members are trained in the nationally acclaimed “Hug-A-Tree” system for teaching young children the essentials of outdoor safety and survival. Public talks and classes for adults are held in navigation and outdoor skills, safety and survival. SARA provides first aid services for various community gatherings. Programs are available for scouting groups, hiking clubs, parent’s groups, hunters and off-road enthusiasts. These may be scheduled by calling (520) 295-4555.

In addition to what many think of above ground search and rescue SARA does confined space (mine/cave) rescue, body recovery from accidents including water and car crashes and suicides. SARA offers technical support to the National Park Service, the US Forest Service and other sister agencies.

Additional Comments

SARA is a member of the Mountain Rescue Association (MRA), which sets standards for certification of group technical skills. SARA is an active participant in this organization and belongs to the Intermountain Region.

Among the Mountain Rescue Association (MRA)-accredited organizations, SARA is a leader in its training process. Many other organizations send their members to classes (at the members' expense) for technical and medical training. SARA trains its own members and members of other component groups on Outdoor Emergency Care and CPR at cost. SARA conducts its own technical training including basic knots and ropes, high angle technical rescue, stokes (stretcher) handling and patient management, cave rescue, mine rescue, swift water (flood) rescue, helicopter operations, at no cost to its members. Other component groups and organizations (e.g. National Park Service (NPS), Border Patrol) can send representatives to trainings