  Avalanche
transceiver search techniques vary depending on the number of antennas in your beacon.
Multiple-antenna beacons display a
direction indicator that points the
way to the victim whereas single-antenna
beacons have you locate the victim by manually searching for the strongest signal. Many
of the instructions on this page apply to both types of transceivers. However, the
coarse search explained on this page (where you follow
the direction indicator) requires a multiple-antenna beacon. Be sure to read the
owner's manual that was supplied with your transceiver
and to practice regularly! (Watch this
chilling
YouTube video to see what it's really like to be buried.)
 The
information on this page is divided into things to do
before you leave the trailhead, what to
do during and immediately after the avalanche, the
signal search that helps you locate the first signal, the
coarse search that gets you within a few meters of the
victim, and the fine search which puts you over the victim.
Remember that probing (aka pinpointing) is an important skill
and shoveling takes a significant amount of time.
| 1 |
Call your local avalanche
forecast center. |
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| 2 |
Have good, high-quality batteries in your transceiver. |
| 3 |
Test your (and your partner's) transceiver. |
| 4 |
Always carry sturdy avalanche probes and a
shovel. |
| 5 |
Wear your transceiver under your outer layer where it cannot be damaged
or removed by obstacles (such as trees and rocks). Your pants pocket may be
acceptable (although it may be more susceptible to impact damage). If you remove
clothing due to warm weather, remember to keep your transceiver under your remaining
clothes. |
| 6 |
Turn off your
cell phone (if practical). |
| 7 |
Use safe travel techniques (e.g., route
selection, only expose one person at a time, etc). |
| 1 |
Make sure the scene is safe. It is important that rescuers are not exposed
to additional avalanche hazard. The actual avalanche path is usually safe if
there isn't significant "hang fire" remaining above the slide. |
| 2 |
Once in a safe location (a.k.a. an "island of safety"), have everybody
change their transceiver to either the off or search mode. If I had a nickel
for every training that stumbled due to a transceiver being left in the transmit
mode... |
| |
Note that the
Barryvox 3000,
Freeride (learn
how), Ortovox 3+,
Ortovox S1,
Mammut Pulse, and
Trackers (if turned
on using a special technique) can be set to automatically switch back to transmit
mode. This can cause confusion if non-searchers change to search mode and then
unknowingly return to transmit mode. It's usually best if non-searchers
turn their beacons off after arriving at a safe zone.
|
| 3 |
Determine the number of victims. The number of victims will influence how
the search should be organized (e.g., whether you should perform a
multiple burial search, when to call for additional
help, etc). You can determine the number of victims by interviewing witnesses,
using your transceiver, and by physical clues (e.g., finding two different brands
of skis). |
| 4 |
Consider calling for additional help. When you should
call for help is very situational dependent. Be sure to consider (1) how many
additional minutes the victim will be buried if you do place the call, (2) how
fast the rescuers can respond, and (3) how you will transport the victims once
you do locate them. |
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Examples: |
| |
- If you are the sole rescuer, the several minutes it will take
to call for help might be better spent searching.
- If additional rescuers can arrive and begin searching quickly
(e.g., within 30 minutes), it is probably worth calling for help
even if you are the only rescuer.
- If you have two searchers and one victim, having the second
searcher call for help may save valuable time getting medical personal
on scene.
|
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| |
The decision to call for additional help is multifaceted and complex. It
is best to consider these factors before an avalanche accident.
|
| 5 |
Look for visual clues (e.g., gloves, skis, etc). If you see a glove or ski,
check to see if it is connected to a victim. There are many examples (including
avalanches that I have responded to) where gear on the snow surface was still
connected to the victim.
|
The goal of the "signal search" is to receive a signal. Period.
If you switch your transceiver to search mode and receive a signal, you have already
completed the signal search.
| 1 |
With your transceiver set to search, move down the avalanche path until
you obtain a signal. The appropriate width of your search path varies by beacon.
The S1, Pieps,
Pulse, and
Tracker2 recommend 50
meters, the Ortovox 3+
and Tracker DTS recommend
40 meters, and the Freeride recommends
30 meters (learn more about
recommended search strip widths). When in doubt, make narrower search strips!
The minute or two you lose making narrower strips won't kill your friend;
having to re-search the entire avalanche might. The following illustrations
show the appropriate spacing for a transceiver that recommends 40 meter spacing.
Note that with a 40 meter search strip, you should get within 20 meters (half
the search strip width) of the sides of the avalanche.
Because it is much easier to move downhill than uphill and because you don't
want to repeat the signal search, when in doubt, narrow your search strip width.
It is always better to spend a few extra minutes searching a narrower strip
than to end up at the bottom of the slide and have to repeat the signal search
while hiking up hill. (Unfortunately, if the last skier in a group gets buried,
the search must be done from the bottom.)
When using a single-antenna transceiver,
slowly rotate your beacon in all orientations (i.e., rotate your wrist 360°)
to increase the likelihood that your antennas will align with the victim's.
Keep your gloves on. It's tempting to take them off and drop them in the
snow when you are working with your transceiver, but you'll want them when
you're probing, shoveling, and providing medical care. |
Remember, the goal of the signal search is to receive a signal.
You should move quickly and deliberately. Locating the initial signal depends more on
choosing an appropriate distance between search paths than on transceiver skill.
The goal of the "coarse search" is to get within two or three meters of
the victim. The coarse search technique varies depending on whether your avalanche transceiver
has a direction indicator (i.e., has
multiple antennas). These instructions only explain the directional
indicator approach.
| 1 |
Perform the signal search until you receive
a signal. |
| 2 |
Follow the direction indicator
(i.e., the arrow or lights). If the distance numbers increase, turn around and
follow the direction indicator in the opposite direction. (The direction indicator
can point in either direction on the flux lines shown in blue, below. You want
to be moving closer to the victim. The Mammut
Pulse and the Ortovox
S1 will usually tell you to turn around if you are moving away from the
victim.) As you follow the direction indicator, slowly turn to re-orient the
beacon so the arrow is pointed inline with the beacon. |
| 3 |
 Continue
to follow the direction indicator. It will follow the flux lines as it guides
you to the victim in an arc as shown here.It is not unusual for transceivers
to give an occasional "blip" in the wrong direction. Pause for a moment
while holding the transceiver very still to allow the direction indicator to
settle.
|
| 4 |
Move relatively quickly while the distance is more than 10 meters. Remain
calm and move deliberately. This is a bad time to fall and injure yourself. |
| 5 |
When the distance is less than 10 meters, slow down and pause for a few
beeps each time the direction indicator changes direction. |
| 6 |
When you are within two or three meters, you have completed the coarse search. |
| |
On most transceivers, the direction
indicator will disappear when you are within two or three meters of the
victim. If your transceiver continues to display the direction indicator, you
should ignore it at this point and focus on the
distance indicator as explained
in the fine search. |
The goal of the "fine search" is to get as close to the victim as possible
so you can begin probing.
| 1 |
Perform the coarse search until the
distance indicator shows that
you are within two or three meters of the victim. |
| 2 |
Only one rescuer is needed for the fine search. Additional rescuers should
begin assembling their probes and
shovels. If there are multiple victims, additional
rescuers should begin a multiple burial search. |
| 3 |
 Holding
your transceiver just above the snow, slowly move it left/right
and forward/backward while looking for the lowest distance. If you are using
a beacon that does not have a distance
indicator, move it until you get the strongest signal.During the fine
search, it is important that the transceiver always points in the same direction
(i.e., don't let it rotate as you swing your arm to the side). Similarly,
keep the transceiver very close (e.g., a few inches) above the snow.
Slowly move your hand from side-to-side looking for the lowest number, and
then forward-and-backward while again looking for the lowest number. This "bracketing"
approach helps you locate the strongest signal. You may find it helpful to put
your foot on the spot with the lowest number and move it only when you find
a lower number.
Repeat this bracketing process until you find the spot on the snow with
the lowest number (i.e., when moving the transceiver left/right or forward/backward
causes the displayed distance to increase).
If you have a one or two-antenna transceiver, you may find more than one
location on the snow that gives a low reading. These are
spikes. If this occurs, simply bracket until you find
a low reading and begin probing at that location. You may need to continue probing
beyond the starting location, but you know you are very close to the victim
and that you will find him if you use proper probing technique. (See the discussion
of spikes for details on the distance and probing time.)
|
| 4 |
When you find the lowest distance (or the strongest signal with an analog
beacon), begin probing until you strike something,
leave the probe in place and begin shoveling.
|
| 5 |
If you have multiple victims, you will
need to use special techniques to locate the additional victims. |
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