PLEASE BE CAREFUL

Dear Nature Lover,

We at Snohomish County Volunteer Search and Rescue are asking you to please be careful whenever outdoors in the wilderness, and especially through the end of this COVID-19 global emergency. You love being outdoors, and we get it.
We feel the same way, and we are asking you to be careful, particularly for these two reasons:

• Rescuer Safety - Rescues require us to work within inches of each other for potentially hours.
Some of us may have Coronavirus and no symptoms, and we risk our fellow rescuers.
Additionally, every time we respond to a mission, we risk physical injury.

• Your Safety - if you are injured, requiring hospital care, you will could be exposed to Coronavirus while at the hospital.

Until the end of this pandemic, please be our heroes by being careful.

Snohomish County Volunteer Search and Rescue

Saving Lives in Snohomish County and Beyond

Snohomish County Volunteer Search and Rescue (SCVSAR) is an all-volunteer organization delivering emergency response to those in need across the county’s urban and wilderness areas. Our dedicated members come to the aid of anyone lost or injured wherever they might be. We find children, search for lost people with dementia, mental health issues, and developmental challenges, respond to major disasters, and perform life-saving first aid and CPR. We support the Snohomish County Sheriff and other Law Enforcement Agencies in evidence searches.

Who We Are

SCVSAR has over 300 dedicated members. We perform more than 120 life-saving missions each year, logging over 9,500 hours of service. Our capabilities include helicopter rescue, 4x4 rescue, wilderness and urban search, K-9, horseback, swift-water, mountain recovery, and emergency first aid.

We operate in coordination with the Snohomish County Sheriff's Office and the Snohomish County Department of Emergency Management. We assist rescue agencies throughout the state.

In an emergency, always dial 911.

Every SCVSAR mission is performed free of charge.

Our continued operation relies primarily on the private donations of businesses and individuals.

Donate Now

Our Stories

Howard Lucus

I just sent you a donation because your last newsletter sent me down memory lane. About 60 years ago, I was a member of Explorer Search and Rescue, a bunch of teenage kids that assisted Mountain Search and Rescue and […]

Debra Draper

I first started when the Oso slide happened. I had a very dear friend of mine that lost his brother in the slide, and just being a person of the community I had to do something to help. The first […]

Jeff Hollowell

I moved to Washington in November 2007 and shortly after I started getting into hiking and mountaineering. I was a relatively new hiker, just learning about the mountains and gear and navigation and on June 21 2009 I went hiking […]

John McKeon

“Three Teens Trapped on Three Fingers Mountain” the news read back on Tuesday evening through Wednesday evening, August 26-27, 2008. Those were the “best-worst days” of our lives, since one of those teens was ours (and another we had custody […]

Terry Tibke’s Life and SAR Story

How do you sum up the life of a man who meant so much to so many? The fact is…you can’t. A man’s life is more than the sum of his accomplishments. The legacy we each leave consists of the […]

Remembering Oso

On the 7th Anniversary of the Oso Landslide, we would like to take some time to reflect: The Oso landslide on March 22, 2014 was, and remains, the deadliest single landslide event in United States history, claiming 43 lives in […]

2020 SCVSAR Fundraising Letter

This year, our fundraising letter features the story of a very complicated October rescue! Please click HERE to view or print our the letter, and thank you for your continued support! Would you like to receive our Newsletters and our […]

SCVSAR Fall 2020 Newsletter

Our newsletter contains our President’s Letter as well as details on recent rescues and more! Please click HERE to view or print our Fall 2020 newsletter, and thank you for your continued support! Would you like to receive our Newsletters […]

President’s Letter

Heidi McKeon, Snohomish County Volunteer Search and Rescue President “Three Teens Rescued from Three Fingers Mountain” the headlines read back on August 26-27, 2008. Our son was one of the three teens whose lives were saved. The 20 hours we […]