How do Search and Rescue Technicians prepare for emergencies

February 17, 2026 - Denfence Stories

Estimated read time - 2:14

Whether it's rope rescuing on mountains, diving at sea, or parachuting out of a plane, Sergeant (Sgt)Nathan Seal believes mental resiliency is essential for Canadian Armed Forces (CAF)Search and Rescue technicians (SARTECHs).

Sgt Seal is a SAR TECH and instructor at the Canadian Forces Search and Rescue School in Comox, B.C. He gives his students the skills and tools that will prepare them for a long and healthy career in the CAF.

"Resiliency training is opening doors for people to be able to recognize how to deal with stress before it becomes a mental health problem."

To help students recentre in stressful situations, he includes strategies such as tactical breathing (orbox breathing), visualization, self-talk, and goal setting in his training. Jumping from a plane is an example of a stressful situation where these strategies can be applied.

"When we initially get into the plane, we'll spend time relaxing and visualizing what the jump is going to be," he said. "The students must then verbally say what the sequence of events will be for that free-fall jump."

"When the door of the plane opens, they might have a fight-or-flight response. Students can tactically breathe and say 'I'm supposed to be here. I know what I'm doing. I know my drills.' And then they can perform the task for that parachute descent."

The Road to Mental Readiness (R2MR), a program included in CAF-wide training, enforces these skills along with additional competencies such as attention control, mindfulness, and setback management. It improves members' mental health through education and initiatives such as its Occupation-Specific Training, in which Sgt Sealis involved as a facilitator.

R2MR offers specialized training to SAR TECHs and other high-risk occupations. While clinicians offer the tools to deal with stress, facilitators like Sgt Sealapply them to the trade's real-life scenarios.

"A lot more people use R2MR skills than they realize. Those skills are there for everybody to use. But we use them better when we practice them and when we have a language for them," he said.

At the school, SAR TECHs are trained to provide a paramedicine response to injured Canadians around the country. Students take a combination of courses throughout the year to perform in various high-stress environments.

Sgt Seal believes that R2MR is as much resiliency training as it is mental health training, allowing students to become high performers in their occupation. In fact, he believes that resiliency and mental readiness training is important for everyone.

"Sometimes, it seems like only the high-stake, stressful jobs need the training. But there's stress everywhere we go, whether it's institutional stress, home stress, or the stress of your job," he said. "That's why it's important to have the skills and the ability to be mentally resilient throughout your career."