Members are encouraged to purchase a team uniform consisting of a bright orange shirt (wool, synthetic, or cotton) with either long or short sleeves. Team patches and a name tag are worn on the shirt. You must be constantly aware that any time you wear this uniform you represent the team to the public. You must always act in a responsible and professional manner when in uniform, whether involved in an official team activity or not. Every member is expected to understand and follow the team’s basic principles of ethics and behavior and to ask the advice of team leadership and/or more experienced members whenever in doubt of the appropriateness of an action.
All EPCSAR members are defacto unpaid employees of the El Paso County Sherriff, as such, we are bound by all rules that govern those employees including reporting to the chain of command within the Sheriff’s office and their policies related to both the use and possession of legal and illegal drugs. A notable element of the Sheriff’s office policy is that use of marijuana, either prescribed or recreational is forbidden by these policies.
- Every member shall consider the safety and welfare of all team members as their first concern.
- No member, whether in leadership capacity or not, shall ever place another person in a position of jeopardy.
- The ability of the team to serve depends to a great degree upon the extent to which it finds acceptance among private and public agencies. This degree of acceptance depends upon the image the team has created for itself. It is the duty of each member to see that the image is a worthy one.
- The team shall not, nor shall any member, solicit contributions of money, goods or services in connection with any search or rescue mission, nor shall any member solicit or accept fees or remuneration which would inure to their benefit.
- No member shall use their association with the team for political, financial, or business purposes that do not directly benefit the team or further the objectives thereof.
- Personal obligations of a purely social character shall be considered secondary to a member’s commitment to the team in the event of a search or rescue mission, or in the event of a recovery mission that requires the use of technical methods.
- No member of the team shall hold membership in any other organization which purports to have a mountain search and rescue capability, but which is not so recognized by the team or the Mountain Rescue Association.
- No member shall act on behalf of the team or presume to represent the team in instances of an emergency character without the express permission of the team officers, mission coordinator, or an authorized representative.
- Each member is obligated by the nature of their commitment to improving upon their ability and capability to serve. Each member shall maintain the highest possible level of proficiency.
- The team shall not, nor shall any member, permit the person or remains of any person to be subjected to indignities or invasions of privacy by representatives of the news media or by any other person not duly authorized by law.
- The welfare of a living, or believed to be living, subject of a search or rescue shall be considered as of the first order of importance after the safety and welfare of team members and persons attached to the team.
- The team shall not, nor shall any member, act on behalf of the team in matters related to the pursuit of fugitives from justice or in any other matter relating to law enforcement, unless approved by the mission coordinator or team officers.
- Unless prior arrangements have been made with the board of directors, no member shall use their membership to solicit discounts from a vendor.
- No member shall respond to, or remain on, any field function of the team while under the influence of either alcohol or drugs.
- Team-approved helmets will be worn by all members participating in any team activity wherein there exists any danger from overhead or from falling.
- Each member will have a working headlamp including spare batteries with them on all field functions.
- The field team leader or Rescue Group Supervisor shall designate a senior member to act as a safety officer for any rope evacuation. The only responsibility of the safety officer shall be to monitor the safety of the entire operation.
- Members will not transmit on any frequency used by or licensed to EPCSAR without first obtaining permission from the board of directors or the communications chairman. The authority to transmit on these frequencies can be revoked at any time by the mission coordinator, field team leader, communications chairman, or the board of directors.
- No member will drive in an unsafe or illegal manner while in route to or from any team function or use their connection with the team as an excuse for such driving.
- Team equipment is not to be used or borrowed by members for private use without prior authorization from the President and Operations Director.
- All team equipment found to be damaged or malfunctioning shall be removed from service and reported to the appropriate committee chairman and the on-duty coordinator.
- Use of emergency lights and sirens on a personal vehicle requires a valid emergency vehicle sticker (EVS) issued by the Colorado Division of Motor Vehicles, recommended by the Operations Director, and approved by the EPCSAR Board of Directors and the Sheriff of El Paso County. No member shall respond to a mission using such equipment unless authorized by the incident commander.
- Only team members may purchase items from the Peddler.
- If you make an error learn from it, move on, and try your very best to not make the same mistake again. Everyone makes a mistake. Our procedures are designed to ensure that any error does not become a catastrophic or life-threatening error. It is inappropriate to remind your teammate of their errors. You can be assured they know they made an error and that error may still be lingering in their mind. Some errors are not easy to forget. Do not be that teammate that announces someone’s error to others, especially to the entire team at a meeting.
