Year: 2016

The INSARAG has managed to achieve many goals over the years. In all cases, these achievements have helped either directly or indirectly the goal of saving more lives following incidents of structural collapse. These achievements include but are not limited to:

• The successful creation of a UN General Assembly (GA) Resolution 57/150 of 2002 on “Strengthening the Effectiveness and Coordination of International USAR Assistance”. This resolution is widely considered to have underpinned much of the progress achieved by the group in recent history.

• The development of INSARAG Guidelines and methodology for USAR operations to ensure standardised training and structures of international USAR teams.

• The development of INSARAG External Classification (IEC) system and IEC Guidelines.

• The development of internationally accepted markings for use on buildings in USAR operations to improve communication of USAR teams on site.

• The development of the methodology for the establishment of a Reception/Departure Centre at the entry points into the affected country to better coordinate team assignment and logistics support on-site.

• The development of a concept for rapid disaster assessment and coordination (the United Nations Disaster Assessment and Coordination (UNDAC) concept).

• The development of the concept of On-Site Operations Coordination Centre (OSOCC) in sudden-onset disasters in general, not only for earthquakes.

• The establishment of a ‘Virtual OSOCC’ on the Internet for real-time information exchange during ongoing emergencies among involved disaster managers.

Membership with INSARAG is open to all countries and /or organisations involved in Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) activities. Countries that are interested in joining the INSARAG network are requested to identify an INSARAG national focal point that acts as interface with the INSARAG Regional Group and the INSARAG Secretariat. Organizations wishing to apply for INSARAG membership can do so by addressing an official request to the INSARAG Secretariat through their respective INSARAG National Focal Points with the USAR team profile form. Organisations from countries that already have a national INSARAG focal point are encouraged to express interest through this focal point. In cases where a national focal point is not designated, organisations may make contact with the INSARAG Secretariat directly. 

INSARAG members are part of a worldwide knowledge-sharing network on collapsed structure rescue and operational field coordination. They are invited to annual meetings of the relevant INSARAG Regional Group, USAR Team Leaders and to participate in INSARAG working groups.  Furthermore, members have access to INSARAG’s information and knowledge-sharing tools, through the “Virtual OSOCC” (Virtual On-Site Operations Coordination Centre) and the Global Disaster Alert and Coordination System (GDACS) on the internet, which provide alert notification in the event of a sudden-onset disaster and real-time information updates and coordination during ongoing disasters. Responsibilities attached to the INSARAG membership can be found in the INSARAG Guidelines.

While USAR teams deploying internationally are strongly recommended to undergo the INSARAG External Classification (IEC), this is not a requirement for membership to the INSARAG as IEC is a voluntary process (Please refer to the IEC page for further information). Countries with no USAR capacity who expect to receive USAR assistance if required or who build up local USAR capacity are as welcome to become INSARAG members.

The INSARAG is composed of a series of fora and geographical regions that all report upward with and through the overarching global elements of the Steering Group. This structure ensures all aspects of the INSARAG’s aim can be achieved at a regional level while still ensuring they are in line with best practise as defined and agreed by the global group.

INSARAG Steering Group

The INSARAG is directed by a Steering Group. This group meets annually and consists of INSARAG Chairman, INSARAG Regional Group’s Chairs and Vice-Chairs, the national focal points of INSARAG External Classification (IEC) classified countries, Chairs of any relevant INSARAG ad-hoc Working Groups and the INSARAG Secretariat. The INSARAG Steering Group governs the process of approving INSARAG advice and as such is the final check ensuring actions and advice published by the group are agreed by the group as a whole.

INSARAG Secretariat

Through structured reporting the INSARAG Secretariat facilitates coordinated communications between the different elements of INSARAG including channelling through the INSARAG Steering Group as required. On the practical side, the Secretariat ensures all events are arranged in cooperation with identified hosts. The Secretariat also administers the INSARAG website and the INSARAG USAR Directory.The Secretariat is hosted in the Emergency Response Section (ERS) of the Response Support Branch (RSB) (which was called in the past “Field Coordination Support Section of the Emergency Services Branch”) of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Geneva.

INSARAG Regional Groups

The INSARAG is organised into the three regional groups:  Africa/Europe/Middle East, Americas, and Asia/Pacific. In addition to regional events such as exercises, these Regional Groups also meet annually to agree on actions required to strengthen regional USAR response and ensure the strategic direction and policies from the INSARAG Steering Group are implemented. This meeting also serves as a channel for the collection of relevant information from participating countries for submission to the INSARAG Steering Group. Each Regional Group has at least one Regional Chair and Regional Vice-Chair. (For more information about Regional Groups, please refer to the Regional Groups pages).

As required, the INSARAG Steering Group may decide to create an INSARAG Regional Antenna. An INSARAG Regional Antenna is established and hosted by an INSARAG member country with the aim of enhancing the capacity of the INSARAG network in that region. Currently, there is only one INSARAG Regional Antenna for the INSARAG Africa/Europe/Middle East Regional Group (For more information regarding the INSARAG Regional Antenna, please refer to the INSARAG Africa/Europe/Middle East Regional Group pages).

INSARAG Working Groups

Task-specific Ad-hoc Working Groups are established at the request of the INSARAG Steering Group. The purpose of these working groups is to develop solutions to specific issues identified by the INSARAG. On completion of the task, the group disbands.

International USAR Team Leaders

This cross-regional network of experienced international USAR practitioners meets annually. These meetings provide a forum to discuss technical issues relating to training and best practice based on lessons learned from previous USAR operations and exercises. The collective input, advice and experience of this group serve to improve the operational capabilities of international USAR response.

United Nations General Assembly Resolution 57/150 of 16 December 2002 on ‘Strengthening the effectiveness and coordination of international urban search and rescue assistance’ is a product of the work of the INSARAG, who pursued its creation. This United Nations General Assembly Resolution makes many pertinent points central to the work of the INSARAG. It also endorses the INSARAG Guidelines and Methodology.

General Assembly Resolution 57/150 importantly highlights that each state has the responsibility first and foremost, to take care of the victims of natural disasters occurring within its borders and that this affected state has primacy, ‘in the initiation, organisation, coordination and implementation of humanitarian assistance’. The resolution is clear that international USAR should supplement existing in- country capacity such as local rescuers, also reinforcing the importance of timely coordination of these resources.

In considering incidents that have become too large for one country to handle, the resolution highlights the need for technically sound international assistance particularly in the field of USAR following earthquakes and other events resulting in structural collapse.

United Nations General Assembly Resolution 57/150 of 2002 (Arabic, English, French, Russian, Spanish)

Below are the list of sponsor countries of the United Nations General Assembly Resolution 57/150 of 2002: 

Afghanistan, Albania, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Egypt, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Hungary, Iceland, India, Italy, Japan, Lesotho, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Malta, Mexico, Monaco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Korea, Republic of Moldova, Romania, Russian Federation, Slovakia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Tajikistan, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Tunisia, Turkey, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and United States of America.

INSARAG activities are guided by United Nations General Assembly Resolution 57/150 of 2002 on “Strengthening the Effectiveness and Coordination of International Urban Search and Rescue Assistance” along with the INSARAG Hyogo Declaration adopted at the first INSARAG Global Meeting in 2010 held in Kobe, Japan, and INSARAG Abu Dhabi Declaration adopted at the second INSARAG Global Meeting in 2015, held in Abu Dhabi, UAE .

INSARAG is mandated to:

• Render emergency preparedness and response activities more effective and thereby save more lives, reduce suffering and minimize adverse consequences.
• Improve efficiency in cooperation among international USAR teams working in collapsed structures at a disaster site.
• Promote activities designed to improve search-and-rescue preparedness in disaster-prone countries, thereby prioritizing developing countries.
• Develop internationally accepted procedures and systems for sustained cooperation between national USAR teams operating on the international scene.
• Develop USAR procedures, guidelines and best practices, and strengthen cooperation between interested organizations during the emergency relief phase.

The International Search and Rescue Advisory Group (INSARAG) was established in 1991. This establishment followed the initiatives of the specialized international Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) teams who operated together in the Mexican earthquake of 1985 and the Armenian earthquake of 1988. So as not to duplicate existing structures, the group was created within the framework of existing humanitarian coordination within the United Nations (UN). To this end, the group’s secretariat falls within the Emergency Response Section (ERS) of the Response Support Branch (RSB) of the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Geneva.

Under this umbrella of the UN, the INSARAG has successfully pursued the creation of a UN General Assembly Resolution on “Strengthening the Effectiveness and Coordination of International USAR Assistance” in 2002. This resolution is widely considered to have underpinned much of the progress achieved by the group over the last two decades.

The INSARAG’s primary purpose is to facilitate coordination between the various international USAR teams who make themselves available for deployment to countries experiencing devastating events of structural collapse due primarily to earthquakes. The group achieves such coordination through facilitating opportunities for communication between these groups ahead of such events. These meetings of teams have resulted in many practical agreements between them that have streamlined working together during actual disasters. Much of the details on how these teams have agreed to work together can be found in the INSARAG Guidelines, a living document outlining the principles agreed within the group.

In 2021, INSARAG commemorated 30 years of life-saving work.

1. This is INSARAG: 30 Years of Preparedness and Response – Anniversary Edition
2. The Exposure Story: 30 Years of Urban Search and Rescue
3. Timeline: 30 Years of INSARAG