History

During the 1980’s when a prospective member joined the Four-Wheel Drive Club of South Africa (4WDC) [soon to become the Four-Wheel Drive Club of Southern Africa] he/she filled in the membership application form, and on the form one of the questions was “Will you be willing to assist in times of national or civil emergency?” As a result of this question, the 4WDC had an indication of who amongst the membership would be prepared to assist if requested to do so.

This information was never really put to any use until the latter part of 1990 when an aircraft went missing in the Black Umfolozi River valley of Northern Kwazulu Natal (KZN). After an extended search for the aircraft was unsuccessful, the official efforts were called off.

However, the family of the missing people decided to continue the search and put out the word for private assistance. The local parachute club, the local hiking club, and the local police force made themselves available. One of the family members was also a member of the KZN chapter of the 4WDC and asked the club if they could assist. This request ended up at the 4WDC in Johannesburg and members willing to assist were called upon, based on what they had filled in on their application forms all those years earlier.

From this, a group of six vehicles under the leadership of the then 4WDC Chairman Neville Marsh, left Johannesburg on a Thursday morning and drove down to assist in the search activities in KZN. Using only 29 MHz CB radios as communications (there were only three radio amateurs in the convoy, so VHF was not an option) the private search was also unsuccessful, and this team returned to Johannesburg on the Monday evening. Unfortunately, the aircraft was not found at the time and in fact the wreckage was discovered in the Southern Drakensberg area hundreds of kilometres away several years later by some backpackers.

The organisation of that search, the logistics behind it, and the processes and procedures used to manage it were all rather haphazard and very disorganised. It became apparent to Neville and some other members of the team that this could be done much more efficiently and professionally if people were correctly trained, correct search management techniques were practiced, and a structured command process was in place. A decision was made to call a meeting in Johannesburg to see who would be interested in forming a volunteer rescue organisation and allow the 4WDC to improve on this situation.

The first meeting was held at Sturrock Park close to the then Wits University several weeks later, and the organisation was formed with an interim committee to get it off the ground. The Unit would be known as the Off-Road Rescue Unit (ORRU) and would operate as a division of the 4WDC. In the weeks and months that followed a constitution was drafted and ORRU was formed, with the first committee meeting taking place in early 1991. A number of those founding members are still active in the organisation to this day.

Initial training was based on map reading and navigation (this was 1991 – before cell phones and GPS’s were around), radio procedures, off-road driving, convoy driving, vehicle maintenance, camping self-sufficiency, and basic first aid. Training was initiated on one Saturday and one Wednesday per month, much as we still do today.

In later years the unit would also start accepting members from other 4×4 clubs, and around the turn of the millennium the organization known as ORRU Gauteng moved out of the 4WDC and became an entity in its own right.

A little while later a need arose to change the name of the organisation, and ORRU Gauteng became SARZA (Search and Rescue South Africa) as we know it today.

From these humble beginnings, SARZA expanded nationwide and is today a national organisation with branches in Gauteng, Limpopo,Lowveld, KZN, Free State, and the Western Cape. Each division is run by its own committee, and everything is coordinated by a National Council.

We offer services in wilderness search and rescue, technical ropework rescue, logistical and radio communications support, and related disciplines on a 24/7 basis all year round. Our infrastructure is set up in such way that a simple call to the appropriate telephone number can mobilize a volunteer team of skilled people, in fully equipped vehicles, with a fully equipped Mobile Command Post (MCP) trailer to assist in a time of need within hours. Today our services are available to Government organisations, municipal rescues services, SAPS, private rescue and medical organisations, and even international response teams.

In addition to being on standby for emergencies, the Unit also makes a further contribution to the community at large by offering communications, event management, and logistical infrastructure to organisers of outdoor events such as road-running marathons, cycle races, mountain bike challenges, and off-road motor racing events, by prior arrangement. These events generate income for the Unit which is used to maintain our MCP trailers and the wide range of expensive communications, navigation, technical ropework, and other essential equipment.