New York Laws
Article 10 - Firefighters and Police Officers
209-BB - Specialized Teams; Volunteer Wilderness/inland Search and Rescue Teams.

§ 209-bb. Specialized teams; volunteer wilderness/inland search and
rescue teams. 1. a. By resolution, after a public hearing the governing
body of each county, city and town is authorized, respectively, to
establish, maintain and supervise municipal-wide and inter-municipal
specialized teams.

b. Counties, cities and towns are authorized to appropriate and expend
such sums as are deemed necessary to establish and maintain specialized
teams pursuant to this section.

c. Municipalities and organizations that insure volunteer
firefighters, volunteer ambulance workers or municipal employees, as the
term "employee" is defined under section eighteen of the public officers
law, may extend such insurance coverage to members of a specialized team
by resolution.

d. For the purposes of this section, "specialized teams" shall mean
any emergency team or squad composed of volunteer firefighters,
volunteer ambulance workers or municipal employees, who shall have
attained the minimum level of training or experience to meet qualifying
standards established by the office of fire prevention and control, and
which is administered by the state, a county, city or town for the
purposes of training for or responding to a man made or natural disaster
by carrying out any activities which are within the relevant training
and expertise of such municipal employees or are authorized pursuant to
the volunteer firefighters' benefit law or the volunteer ambulance
workers' benefit law but which are not normally provided by such
entities.

2. a. The governing body of each county, city, town and village is
authorized, respectively, to contract for the assistance of a volunteer
wilderness/inland search and rescue team for the purpose of locating and
rescuing an individual or individuals.

b. No municipality shall be liable for the injury, death or damage to
a volunteer wilderness/inland search and rescue team or its members
occurring during the performance of the activities authorized by this
section. Such team and its members shall indemnify and hold harmless the
municipality that contracted for assistance with such volunteer
wilderness/inland search and rescue team pursuant to this section
against any claim of liability for any injury, death or property damage
that may occur as a result of an act of such team and its members,
including, but not limited to, any indemnity paid, attorneys' fees,
costs and litigation expenses. The provisions of this subdivision shall
not apply when the municipality has engaged in willful misconduct, gross
negligence or recklessness.

c. For purposes of this section, "volunteer wilderness/inland search
and rescue team" or "team" shall mean an organization: whose members
have obtained a minimum level of training or experience as may be
established by the department of environmental conservation's office of
public protection; that is formed for the purpose of locating and
rescuing, or recovering, a known individual or known individuals, in an
unknown location, whose safety may be threatened by conditions related
to the environment or other factors; that is incorporated under the laws
of New York state; and that operates not for pecuniary profit or
financial gain.

d. For the purposes of this section, "volunteer wilderness/inland
search and rescue team member" shall mean an active volunteer member of
a volunteer search and rescue team who meets the minimum level of
training or experience pursuant to paragraph c of this subdivision and
is specified on a list regularly maintained by the volunteer
wilderness/inland search and rescue team. Such list shall be provided to
a requesting municipality. In addition, for purposes of this section, a

volunteer wilderness/inland search and rescue team member shall be an
independent contractor and shall not be considered an officer or
employee of the contracting municipality.

3. Whenever a law enforcement agency or other state agency is engaged
in a search or rescue operation, any volunteer wilderness/inland search
and rescue team involved in such operation shall be subject to the
command and control of the law enforcement or other state agency
conducting such operation.

Structure New York Laws