Recently, Saintpaulrepublicans.us posted an article, “Combatting MN’s Missing 411 Areas” about geographical clusters in Minnesota where people vanish without a trace under mysterious circumstances, known as Missing 411 cases. I, Publius Jr, posted it because one of the main industries in Minnesota has to do with tourism in our great outdoors and it is important people are safe, have a good time in our great outdoors and come back often.
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (MN DNR) has yet to promote using Personal Locator Beacons, or other safety devices other than personal flotation devices, which they do promote. So I want to inform you of how important these devices are and they are worth the investment in them as without them your life may be in jeopardy if Search and Rescue can’t locate you if you should get lost, injured, or both.
Personal Locator Device (PLB)
The videos below explain in detail how a Personal Locator Beacon (PLB) or Satellite Messenger work. The opinions of the people in the videos are their own. Though David Paulides, the author of the Missing 411 Series says that people who take a PLB and a firearm to do outdoor activities seemingly never go missing.
The HikingGuy.com video gives an extensive overview of both devices and tells you later in the video he has purchased both of the devices. He has a separate video on when one should use a PLB or Satellite Messenger, you can view that on his YouTube Channel.
Once you purchase one you need to register it.
The REI video says the PLB has an advantage over the Satellite Messenger in that the battery life is in terms of years and there is no monthly subscription fee, however there is no communication with the PLB, once you enable it the Search and Rescue people will get to work to find you with the beacon. You can find an REI in the Twin Cities and ask one of their salespeople questions you may have.
Captain Cody states the ACR PLB is the best and then goes on to explain why he thinks the other devices are not as good. He does a test of the device as well as a GPS test (you get 20 tests).
One note about the PLB is that it works on the water and also on land anywhere in the world. He mentions it has two types of strobes for Search and Rescue to find you even at night.
RECCO Reflectors
The RECCO Advanced Rescue Technology has been around for some time in Ski areas, they are starting to branch out to areas that aren’t as prone to avalanches such as Minnesota where we do get snow but nothing like the Rocky Mountains. Though it isn’t just for snowy areas.
Minnesota does not currently have this system, but it would be nice if they did.
They explain on their website recco.com/outdoor-rescue how people with apparel and gear with RECCO reflectors in them or attachable reflectors to your clothes, helmet, and backpacks can be found if they get lost. Their website has a map showing rescues. This system would be perfect for lost hikers, hunters, mountain bikers, and anglers. The reflector doesn’t have a battery in it that one can tell and it just “searchable,” as they say.
They have a system they can attach to a helicopter to search large swaths of land at once, making it a more efficient search for someone who is lost.
How does it work? Well it is easy, you wear a garment or have gear that has a RECCO Reflector on it and when a RECCO Detector is used it will find the reflector. Here’s a great video that helps Search and Rescue (SAR) workers find people who are lost.
While the slow gears of government warm to new technology, you can research these products and purchase them now and demand our Minnesota DNR and the SAR teams in the state use this technology. There shouldn’t be any politics in finding someone who is lost or injured in the outdoors.
Personal Locator Beacons already exist and they are used all over the world now. Invest in one or give them as a gift to a loved one.
This article was not authorized by any manufacturer of any product, this website doesn’t get compensated in any way. I tried to present the material in such a manner in which you can learn from the videos and formulate what device to get if you do get one. The person who inspired me to write this article is David Paulides, the former policeman who wrote the Missing 411 books. He advocates Personal Locator Beacons, and also promotes the RECCO Reflectors. ~~ Publius Jr.