The High Sheriff of the Isle of Wight, Graham Biss, presented 8 long-serving members of Isle of Wight Search and Rescue with their Kings Coronation Medals on 22nd August 2024.
The King Charles III Coronation Medal are commemorative medals created to mark the coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla, which took place on 6 May 2023. Graham was welcomed by Dean Terrett BEM, Chairman and Founder of WightSAR.
Graham was given a tour of the new Incident Control Vehicle to understand how a missing person search is coordinated and managed with the new sophisticated SarSYS Incident Mapping system and vehicle communication centre.
A further tour of the Incident Support Vehicle and an introduction to some of WightSAR’s operational search assets followed. It was also an opportunity for Graham to meet their probationary search dogs, Maali and Ginny and their trainee handlers and to speak to the local Police Search Advisors who deploy WightSAR and hear about the other partner agencies WightSAR works with.
Graham also heard how as a registered charity WightSAR fundraise for all their equipment and operational costs.
Congratulations to all those who received their medals. A thank you was also given to the rest of the Team who fell outside of the 5 years of continuous service eligibility criteria. WightSAR’s strength comes from its members, past and present, both Operational and Support. Despite a wet & windy August evening an enjoyable & informative evening was had by all.
Isle of Wight Search and Rescue, (WightSAR), consists of 31 volunteers, on call 24/7, 365 days of the year to support Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary in searches for high risk missing people across the Isle of Wight. Established in 2011, WightSAR is one of 34 Lowland Rescue Teams across the country.
To find out more about WightSAR visit www.wightsar.org
Well done all, you are all a great asset in what you do