Idaho Guard, Boise Firefighters Practice Helicopter Rescues

Idaho Guard, Local Firefighters Strengthen Hoist Capabilities

By Maj. Robert Taylor, Idaho National Guard

BOISE, Idaho - The Idaho Army National Guard's State Aviation Group trained with members of the Boise Fire Department's swift water dive team Nov. 3-4 on Gowen Field, practicing their hoist use while wearing specialized rescue equipment to prepare for search-and-rescue and swift water rescue missions.

"It's easier to train a firefighter who has swift water training to ride on the hoist than it is to train an Army hoist operator to become swift water qualified," said Bart Carrio, Boise Fire Department operations captain and a paramedic and swift water dive technician. "We are able to learn in a few iterations the skill set to ride down the cable and package the patient, which we already do, so this is just a slightly different variation of that."

The Idaho Army National Guard and the Boise Fire Department have trained together several times a year since 2018, and the agencies signed a memorandum of understanding formalizing their partnership earlier this summer.

Combining the Idaho Army National Guard's aviation and hoist capabilities with the Boise Fire Department's specialized technical rescue and advanced life support expertise allows each agency to leverage its strengths while providing a highly capable aerial rescue team.

The Idaho Army National Guard's HH-60 Black Hawk and UH-72 Lakota helicopters are the only helicopters in Idaho with hoist capabilities. In addition, the Black Hawks' large engines allow crews to operate at high elevations, enabling rescues in rugged, inaccessible terrain.

The two organizations have completed water rescues together, and a Boise Fire Department paramedic has accompanied Idaho Army National Guard flight crews on search-and-rescue missions to provide additional medical expertise to injured patients.

The Idaho Army National Guard has conducted 17 search-and-rescue missions in 2026. A Boise Fire Department paramedic has assisted the Idaho Army National Guard with three of those rescues, including a July rescue on Mount Idaho, the state's seventh-highest peak. The mission was the highest-recorded hoist search-and-rescue mission in state history.

In addition, a Boise Fire paramedic remained on call with Idaho Army National Guard flight crews in July and August after Gov. Brad Little activated the Idaho National Guard to support the state's firefighting efforts. The crews maintained an aerial rescue capability for wildland firefighters throughout the period, although they did not receive any rescue requests.

"Our pilots and crew members train year-round for complex missions, integrating our community partners to perform technical and difficult search and rescue missions when our fellow citizens need us the most," said Col. Jim Mandel, Idaho Army National Guard state aviation officer.

Carrico estimates the partnership has saved about 10 lives over the years, including four this year. In 2017, the agencies worked together to rescue a 68-year-old man in Weiser after floodwaters stranded him in his house. The partnership quickly grew after that mission.

The agencies also worked together in 2019 to rescue two people trapped in floodwaters surrounding their home near Grangeville.

More recently, the Idaho Army National Guard and Boise Fire Department teamed up in May 2025 to rescue two rafters on the Owyhee River in Malheur County, Oregon.

"We complement each other and increase both organizations' ability to better serve our city and state," Carrico said.