Lost Person Behavior
by Robert J. Koester
A definitive guide for search and rescue professionals, using data from the International Search & Rescue Incident Database (ISRID) to predict where lost individuals might be found.
Learn more ↗Resources & Publications
Trusted organizations, tools, and reading that inform how we search.
Organizations & Tools
SAR resources
Why we train on this
Modern search theory — where lost people actually go, how to manage a search, and how to coordinate under ICS — is what turns a crowd of volunteers into an effective team. These resources are the backbone of that knowledge.
See our training → Recommended Reading 
Publications
Urban Search: Managing Missing Person Searches in the Urban Environment
by Christopher S. Young & John Wehbring
The first comprehensive guide to urban search. It compares factors of an urban/suburban incident with wilderness search — preplanning, search management, special investigation considerations, use of resources, and documentation.
Learn more ↗ Land Search and Rescue Addendum
by National Search and Rescue Committee (NSARC)
An official, standardized guide developed by NSARC to provide operational direction for civil search and rescue operations in the terrestrial environment.
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