OLATHE, Kan. – Though we didn’t get an abundance of snow, parts of the metro did feel the flakes coming down. Saturday, a group of Boy Scouts learned to search and rescue, no matter what the weather brings.
It wasn’t an actual search and rescue mission, but it was as close as it gets.
“The fact that we got to work with these actual professionals and see what they do in these real situations that really opened our eyes,” said 16-year-old Eagle Scout Abhishek Arnipalli.
Nearly 60 Boy Scouts watched and learned from Johnson County first responders Saturday at Kill Creek Park in Olathe.
“They’re really helpful and they’ve just been super partners with us,” said Troop 218 Assistant Scout Master Bruce White.
Radio chatter, coordinates and six different search and rescue scenarios are what the scouts learn during training.
“They lead their team, they brief their team, they use their map and their compasses to use the clues that we give them,” said White.
Arnipalli said, “We’re doing this the exact same way that the emergency responders do it too, so we would know what to do in a situation like this if it ever arises for us, when we’re camping out in the woods.”
The boys stood huddled in hats, jackets, extra layers, seeking steaming relief from the season’s first snow.
“I think it just made it more adventurous since it was kind of a harder situation. We know how to be prepared in a cold weather situation,” said Arnipalli.
The scouts ranged in age from 11 to 18. The assistant scout leader said the practice in snow is great since they camp out 12 months a year.
