Cowlitz County Search & Rescue

Mission

Cowlitz County Search and Rescue (CCSAR) works in partnership with the Cowlitz County Sheriff's Office (CCSO) and the citizens of its communities and the state to provide assistance to persons in distress and in urgent situations. We search for people in trouble in a wide variety of terrains from mountainous areas, to river banks, to urban locales. We search in the heat of summer and on snowy winter nights. We educate children, hikers and backcountry enthusiasts in safe activities, so they will avoid danger that result in the need for rescue. These things we do so that others may live.

About Us

Our agency is staffed by volunteer members who donate their time, money, and skills in order to be well-trained, well-equipped, and well-prepared when our community needs us.Cowlitz County Search & Rescue volunteers are on-call 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, to respond to persons lost, injured, or endangered anywhere in Cowlitz County's 1,166 square miles, under the authority of the Cowlitz County Sheriff. We serve those communities which comprise Cowlitz County, the residents outside of those communities, and all travelers from outside of Cowlitz County who choose to visit.

Cowlitz County Search & Rescue participates in a state-wide mutual aid program, under the authority of the Washington State Department of Emergency Management, and is often requested to assist our fellow search and rescue teams throughout the State of Washington in supporting their missions.

Cowlitz County Search & Rescue also supports the Cowlitz County Sheriff and local law enforcement agencies in active criminal investigations by assisting in evidence searches.

Cowlitz County Search & Rescue relies on the donations of its members and the community in order to provide these services. Cowlitz County Search & Rescue receives no funding from the Sheriff's Office, Cowlitz County, or any other government agency to fund our operations. 

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Cowlitz County Search & Rescue is a federally registered 501(c)3 non-profit and tax-exempt organization who partners with the Cowlitz County Sheriff's Office to provide search and rescue services.