Iceland: ICE-SAR Protects People During Volcano Eruption
Icelandic search and rescue force ICE-SAR monitors gas pollution and informs & educates thousands of people watching the eruption
in Iceland, volcano eruptions are more commonplace as the last one erupted just a few months ago. While these spectacular eruptions are a marvel to view the power of nature in action, the dangerous conditions created by these eruptions put first responders and others at risk of injury. Working in these and other extreme conditions, the Icelandic search and rescue force ICE-SAR is protected by GORE-TEX product technology and always ready to step in and do what is necessary to protect people. Watch the work of ICE-SAR captured through the lens of Siggi.
The local ICE-SAR team in Grindavík, close to an active volcano site, is busy night and day. With the help from teams all over Iceland, they respond to callouts in the area, undergoing rigorous search and rescue missions alongside other challenging tasks in the uncertain first few weeks of an eruption. These members of the Grindavík team are on a regular patrolling mission in the first days of the eruption.
Thousands of ill-equipped and inexperienced people hike into volcano eruption areas on a daily basis. Icelandic ICE-SAR teams respond to what can be multiple callouts a day, from sprained ankles to heart attacks and everything in between, the teams must face hazardous conditions to rescue these people. To this day there are ongoing, regular callouts, accidents, and missing people in the eruption area as the volcano keeps going and shows no sign of stopping. These heroes need equipment that compromises on neither comfort nor safety, which is why they don themselves in GORE-TEX product technologies, keeping those who keep us safe, safe.
During the first days of an eruption, there is usually a lot of uncertainty. With new craters opening up regularly and poisonous gas coming up and settling in the valleys and around the volcano, ICE-SAR's role is, amongst other things, to measure and monitor gas pollution and inform & educate the thousands of people hiking into the area every day.