In Hoogeloon, a 38-year-old missing woman is being searched for in a forest area. The family reported the missing person to the police on Saturday, and the search has been going on ever since. The police will receive the help of the Veterans Search Team. Who is on that team? How do they work? “The willingness to help search for missing persons is great,” says spokesman Inno Rutting.
The Veterans Search Team (VST) is increasingly being called upon for missing persons. The request to help, as recently in the search for the multiple limited Hebe and her supervisor Sanne, comes from the police. “They are asking for our help and are coordinating the search,” says Inno Rutting, spokesman for Veterans Search Team. The search team comes into action about fifty times a year.
“Volunteers come from all parts of the country. They arrive at the agreed place within two hours.”
After the request of the police, a coordinator and a commander are appointed at VST who will supervise the action. “The volunteers are approached via a call. They sign up for the search and come to an agreed place within two hours. On Tuesday there were about one hundred and twenty volunteers in Waspik. They come from all parts of the country,” says Rutting.
The VST volunteers have a uniformed background, Rutting describes. “Ninety percent has been in the military. But there are volunteers who have worked for the fire brigade, police or forestry.”
The police take the lead in the search and receive support from the VST. “We have several specialisms. If there is a demand to deploy a drone, we can do that. We even have an underwater drone. In addition, we have bikers who go through a certain search area with a mountain bike. Or so-called trackersspecialists in the search for traces.”
“There are so many volunteers ready for every missing person.”
The most famous image of the VST is walking in a line. “The volunteers walk in a row across the fields and in the woods.” In this way, meter by meter is searched and combed. “We don’t use sniffer dogs. There are other services for that.”
More than a hundred VST volunteers traveled to Waspik when Sanne and Hebe went missing. It surprises Rutting time and time again. “There are so many people ready for every missing person. That is very special. I am proud of that. We will stay as long as it is necessary and as long as our people can handle it. We have to stay sharp.”
