Riverside County's Emergency Animal Rescue Team Prepares for the Inevitable SoCal Disaster Event

There they were, lined up in teams of two, one behind another...pickup trucks, with horse trailers of various sizes in tow. The occasional car and SUV interspersed amongst them. And then there were many the white trucks and uniformed officers from Riverside County Dept. of Animal Services (RCDAS).

People driving by Skyline Corporation in San Jacinto on a recent Saturday must have thought there was a major emergency and no one had told them. 

Well, something like that. Actually, it was a mock emergency planned as a disaster-readiness, team-training exercise for those involved with Riverside Emergency Animal Rescue System (REARS).

The purpose was to practice the mobilization, command and control, strategies and tactics of REARS for a disaster incident in Riverside County. In this particular case, the scenario was a simulated wild-land fire threatening Homeland and Nuevo which required the evacuation of animals from private residences.

Participating in the exercise were members of RCDAS field services staff, REARS volunteers, and volunteers with Riverside Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service (RACES).

Skyline's parking lot served as the incident command post. From there the teams, each comprised of four REARS volunteers and one RACES volunteer, headed to Juniper Springs with assignments to rescue horses, cats and dogs (simulated) and bring them back to the command post. All during the exercise the teams kept in contact with the incident command post where RACES volunteers manned the communications center, a fully-equipped mobile unit provided by the city of Moreno Valley.

"This is a wonderful opportunity for the Animal Control officers and REARS volunteers to learn to work together for the benefit of the animals in our communities," said Tammie Belmonte, county coordinator for REARS, in summing up the day's training exercise. Belmonte also is captain of field operations for RCDAS.

"Our REARS members are experts with equine and other livestock," she continued. "The officers are experts with capture and transportation of aggressive and very scared animals, large and small. Teaming the two groups together for this type of training gives all involved a clear understanding and appreciation for each other's strengths. The exercise brings us together as a highly trained group of volunteers and paid staff."

REARS is a non-profit entity that performs animal rescue, evacuation, sheltering, care and welfare of domestic and livestock animals within Riverside County during times of disaster or extraordinary emergencies. REARS was formed after the 2003 Mountain Fire in southwest Riverside County. Experiences during that incident revealed the need for a coordinated effort for animal evacuation.

REARS is comprised of a coordinating council consisting of RCDAS, Riverside County Sheriff's Department, Riverside County Fire Department - Office of Emergency Services, and California Highway Patrol. Those involved with the organization can be deployed anywhere within Riverside County for emergency activities, and when needed, may be deployed out of the county.

RACES is a national organization whose members provide amateur radio communications in support of emergency management entities throughout the United States and its territories. Its volunteers serve during emergency and disaster situations where normal governmental communications systems have sustained damage or when additional communications are required or desired. Situations can include natural disasters, technological disasters, civil disorder, nuclear/chemical incidents, acts of terrorism and enemy attack.

To learn more about REARS, visit www.rcrears.com, and for more on RACES, visit www.rivcoraces.org.

Submitted by REARS volunteer Jean Clement, Limelight Public Relations