“A boy of 12 years disappeared ...”, “A girl left home and the girl didn’t return, her eyes are blue, her hair is brown ...”, “A man was missing ...”. Such announcements about the loss of people are full of pages of print publications and Internet resources. Who is looking for lost people? Police, the Ministry of Emergency Situations and volunteers, such as representatives of the Lisa Alert organization. Why is the search squad so called and what does it do? This will be discussed below.
Who is looking for missing people?
The statistics are harsh and inexorable, and it testifies that in Russia every half hour a person disappears. The police department receives annually up to two hundred thousand applications from relatives looking for their missing loved ones. The vast majority of these appeals are processed promptly, and people are found and return to their families. Police officers, the Ministry of Emergencies, and more recently, volunteers from the Lisa Alert search squad have been involved in the search. The life of the missing people depends on the coherence of the work of each team member and the speed of action. Interested people make up the backbone of the search squad "Lisa Alert". Why is he called that?
Lisa - a girl who did not have time to help
The history of the squad began in 2010. This summer, the boy Sasha and his mother disappeared. Volunteers went out in search, and the child was found alive and healthy. And in September, the girl Lisa Fomkina from Orekhovo-Zuevo disappeared, who went to the forest with her aunt and got lost. In the case of Lisa, the search was not started immediately, precious time was lost. Volunteers joined the search only on the fifth day after the disappearance of the child. She was sought by 300 people who sincerely worried about the fate of a little unfamiliar girl. She was found 10 days after the loss. Unfortunately, help came too late. The 5-year-old girl stayed in the forest without food and water for nine days, but did not wait for her savior.
Volunteers who participated in the search on September 24, 2010, were shocked by what happened to the core. On the same day, they organized a volunteer search squad Lisa Alert. Why is it called so, every member of this movement knows.
Alert means search
The name of the little heroic girl Lisa has become a symbol of human participation and complicity. The word "alert" in translation from English means "search".
In the United States, the Amber Alert system has been operating since the mid-90s, thanks to which data on each missing child is displayed on public displays, on radio, in newspapers, and appears on the Internet. In our country, unfortunately, there is no such system yet. Employees of the Lisa Alert search squad are trying on their own to introduce, if not an analogue of such a system in Russia, then at least make information about someone else's misfortune accessible. Indeed, in the case when people disappear, and especially children, every minute counts.
Who are the members of the search squad?
Why the unit is called "Lisa Alert", you now know. Let's talk about its composition.
The detachment from Moscow, the first in this truly all-Russian movement, is the largest and most active. To date, units with different numbers of participants are formed in forty regions of the country.
There is no single control center, each branch operates independently. But between them there is a constant relationship, which is carried out as a result of training new employees, the exchange of experience and information. The organization does not have settlement accounts, all activities are carried out on a voluntary basis. During search work, volunteers are provided with the necessary equipment, communications and transport. During long searches, participants in the rescue operation are provided with food.
Search engines do not charge money for their services. Those who want to help can enroll in the squad, provide technical assistance or other feasible support. And each participant knows why the group is called “Lisa Alert”, and is afraid not to be in time for those who are in trouble.
How is the search?
Representatives of the squad seek to inform people about what to do if a person is missing. The fate of the lost people depends on the clear and timely actions of the appealing relatives. According to statistics, when contacting on the first day, 98% are lost, on the second day - 85%, when contacting on the third day, the percentage of happy outcome is reduced to 60%. And later, the chances of finding a missing person alive, especially a child, are practically nil.
In the case of Lisa Fomkina, active searches began only on the fifth day, which led to a tragedy that shocked the volunteers. That's why the search squad is called “Lisa Alert” - this is not only a tribute to the memory, but also an eternal reminder that someone is currently waiting for help.
Interaction with government agencies
Representatives of search engines over the years of the detachment's establishment have established contact with the police and the Ministry of Emergencies. After all, the main task of finding the missing people lies precisely with the authorities. But what can one local inspector do if a person is lost in the forest? One in the field is not a warrior, given the scale of the search.
The search squad "Lisa Alert" comes to the rescue. Volunteers create mobile search groups, draw up an action plan, collect information about the missing person, where and when he was last seen. Every little thing can be the key to a happy outcome.
Where does the search begin?
The search team has a hotline. Single number valid throughout the country. For those who have lost their loved ones but hope to find them, sometimes it becomes the only thread to salvation. The operator accepts the call, but the volunteers do not begin to act without a statement of the loss received by the police. There are frequent cases when hooligans call and tell the tragic story of a person missing. If there is a statement to the police, representatives of the search detachment come into action, developing organized and well-coordinated activities, not forgetting for a minute why this is called "Lisa Alert".
Operation "Search"
Each member of the detachment has its own place and role in the operation. At the main headquarters, they act remotely, collecting information bit by bit, disseminating it in the media, on the Internet, putting up announcements, making a map of the search area.
Directly on the spot, an operational headquarters unfolds. In it, the coordinator determines the search and rescue plan, compiles a detailed map of the area with the definition of search squares for each member of the group. Here, the radio operator provides communication with each participant, so that if they are found, the rest of the search participants can come to the aid immediately. During long searches, the support team arranges for the supply of food, water and other necessary materials so that the searches continue without stopping.
Directly in the search area are teams of volunteers trained to navigate rough terrain. Beginners are always placed next to experienced search engines. If necessary, helicopters of an aviation group will fly into the sky to provide aerial reconnaissance. If the search area is far away, then the groups can be delivered on all-terrain vehicles. The search engines include dog handlers with dogs that help find lost people. In the event that the tragedy occurred near a reservoir, divers from the Ministry of Emergencies will examine the water area. All these forces are attracted, depending on the complexity of the search, in order to have time to come to the rescue and not to repeat the situation that happened many years ago, and to remind yourself why the Lisa Alert is so called.
Who can become a member of the squad?
The ranks of the Lisa Alert search squad are open to all comers. Everyone can provide all possible assistance. Students, retirees, accountants, housewives, athletes or freelancers - all can become members of a voluntary squad. Any person who has reached the age of majority may become a volunteer. Those who are still in school can help disseminate and search for information on the Internet, but do not participate in active searches.
Why the search squad "Lisa Alert" is so called, we have already explained to you. Volunteers are taught first-aid techniques, trained to work with navigators, a compass, a radio station, and the basics of cartography. So that each volunteer can provide the necessary assistance to the victim and notify the other team members about the find.
Search engines keep up with the times
The search squad "Lisa Alert" has its own hotline number, the same throughout Russia. Each cherished number must be memorized. Indeed, in the case when a person is lost, you can not lose a minute. The operator will instruct the applicant about the action algorithm.
Also on the official website of Liza Alert you can find a search form, by filling out which, each contactee can be sure that this information will be seen in different parts of the country.
Now “Lisa Alert” also has a mobile application. Anyone can download it to a smartphone. It is rather an application for notifying volunteers that a person has disappeared in a particular region. It helps to quickly assemble rapid response teams.
Forewarned is forearmed
Members of the group are actively prophylactic measures aimed at reducing the number of disappearances. Simple rules sometimes help save someone's life. Also, the employees of the Lisa Alert detachment (why they called it that, many are thinking) have developed clear algorithms on how to act during search operations in the forest, on a reservoir, in the city and in other conditions.
Despite all efforts, in Russia from 15 to 30 thousand children disappear annually. Every tenth of them is forever. That is why the “Lisa Alert” is so called, and the victory of these people is someone’s saved life!