Chapter 06: Reports and Documentation

Tahoe Backcountry Ski Patrol Manual

Patrollers must be familiar with each of the following forms, which must be carried while patrolling, and are carried in the Forms Module. It is the responsibility of the Mountain Manager to see that Patrol Leaders are supplied with the proper forms.

Documentation of our patrol activities is extremely important for a number of reasons. Possible legal ramifications of first-aid treatment are obvious, but there are additional reasons for proper documentation. For example, the Forest Service needs to know what we are doing and how many hours we devote to patrol activities. This may help the Forest Service justify future expenditures on our behalf. Obtaining thorough information from a person reporting someone missing is critical for search and rescue operations. Patrollers should become familiar with each of the forms. [Read filed patrol reports here].

Patrol Report

This is the most important form. This form is filled out by Patrol Leaders and records information related to the patrol activities of each area on a particular day. The original is kept in the patrol log book, and copies are faxed to the preset on the Operations trailer fax machine. Scanned copies can be mailed to mailto:reports@tbsp.org

The Patrol Report is also used to record training and instruction activities for a particular day, to both assist the Operations Officer in keeping track of patrol day counts, and enable the Training Officer to monitor training status of patrollers and candidates. A separate Patrol Report should be used for this purpose, with the comment “Training in subjects XXX, YYY, ZZZ etc.” and identification of instructors versus students.

Patrol Leader Checklist

Contains area specific information the Patrol Leader needs, including a check list of all Patrol Leader procedures, important telephone numbers, helicopter landing zones, sunset table, etc.

Incident Report

This form records information concerning contact with the public, and is to be used to report all injuries. The original is attached to the Patrol Report, and a copy is mailed to the Patrol Director. Completion of the Incident Report is noted on the Patrol Report.

Search and Rescue Initiation Form

Patrollers do not supervise or conduct search and rescue operations, and do not participate in such operations without USFS approval. However, whenever someone reports a person missing, this report is filled out a completely as possible with information supplied by the individual(s) reporting the missing person. Those individuals should be asked to stay until the Sheriff arrives, but in the event the reporting individual leaves, we will have the necessary information for the Sheriff. The original is given to the Sheriff, and a copy is attached to the Patrol Report. The most current versions of these forms will be found in the Forms Module.