Search and rescue team conducting night exercise in Goose River, P.E.I.

P.E.I. Ground Search and Rescue will be conducting anight navigation and shelter building exercise Saturday and Sunday in the Goose River, P.E.I., area.

Frances Gertsch, training officer for rescue team, said it's their first night exercise of the year and wanted to remind Islanders that there will be a lot of activity in the area as a result of the training.

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"We're simply practicing our ability to navigate accurately and quickly in darkness and through the woods, which is a skill that we need because unfortunately people don't just go missing during daylight hours," Gertschsaid.

"We really need to make sure that we have those skills and that people are comfortable navigating at night, which is more challenging than navigating during the day."

Training needs to reflect real search situations

The Ground Search and Rescue teamis a volunteer, non-profit organizationwith about 100 volunteer members who are on-call for search and rescue efforts 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

Rescue team members will be inGoose River on Saturday afternoon and leavingSunday morning all members will be identifiable by orange vests and jackets.

"Our training needs to reflect the kind of situations we may be out in when we're responding to a real search," Gertsch added.

"So we're always out in all kinds of weather just to prepare us for what might be the reality we face in the future."

Gertschasked Islanders to use caution when driving on the roads in the area as there may be vehicles parked on the shoulder of the road and volunteers walking about.

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