High Angle Rough Terrain Team

The HEMSI High Angle Rescue Team (HART), based in Huntsville, Alabama, is an all-volunteer rapid response unit operating primarily in the city of Huntsville and Madison County Alabama. The Unit specializes in high angle rescue operations in both urban and wilderness settings.

The Unit is made up of both EMT/Paramedic trained members and Rescue Specialists, all acting under HEMSI's medical control.  Each member is cross-trained in various areas to make the team as flexible as possible in its response to emergency situations.  The Team maintains a cache of specialized equipment in a 4WD response vehicle based at a central location for rapid response.  Each member carries a pager and has his personal rescue equipment in his vehicle.  Members carry adequate personal equipment to ensure self-sufficiency in a rescue/disaster environment for extended periods of time.

Members of the HEMSI HART are trained in disaster response, rough country search and rescue missions, urban search and rescue in collapsed buildings and confined spaces, and those involving high angle rescue techniques to rescue patients from towers, buildings, cliffs, caves, industrial settings, and other locations.

The HEMSI HART stands ready to assist any person or agency upon request without fee.  The Team will work with and assist the local authority to successfully locate, access, stabilize, and transport any patient from a hostile environment to traditional medical services.