About Us

The directors of D.A.R.T. (Pty) Ltd., are founder members of Rescue South Africa (RSA) and are responsible for the day to day running of this disaster response team.

We have been involved in specialised rescue training for:

Anglo American
B.H.P. Biliton
Sasol Secunda
Cape Winelands Municipality
Middelberg Municipality
Hosted and facilitated ‘Train the Trainer’ in USAR for USAID and Gauteng Local Government.
Malongo Fire Department, Angola

Provided logistical support for support for sudden onset disasters e.g., xenophobia camps, Gauteng.
Provide event disaster plans and medial standby for major events.

Training

We would also like to take this opportunity to present the other services that we can provide:

Facilitation of swimming lessons for emergency personnel who are non-swimmers
One day swift water awareness course
Swift Water Rescue and Flood Management/Command Programmes
Fire and EMS Courses
Industrial & Agricultural Rescue
Incident Command Courses
Emergency Service Systems development
Preparation of SOP’s (Standard Operating Procedures)
Consultation for equipment requirements and strategy development
Provision of subject specialists/ incident command during incidents
Provision of logistic support for large scale incidents
Expedition logistics and medical backup

Important Notes

We work on an International best practice ratio of five students per instructor.
Prerequisite for the courses, medical certificates stating that the delegate is medically fit to undertake physical training as well as work at height.

Ian Michael Scher

30 years in Emergency Services, starting as a volunteer in Sandton Fire Department and later when Sandton merged with Johannesburg Fire Department, rose to the rank of District Chief in charge of all volunteers (approx 500) firefighters, rescuers and medical crews.

Founder member of Rescue South Africa, the official USAR rescue team from South Africa. Responsible for logistics during responses to India, Algeria, Iran, Pakistan earthquakes and Goma, DRC volcanic eruption.

Currently CEO Rescue South Africa and MD of D.A.R.T. (Disaster and Rescue Training (Pty) Ltd, which is a company that trains firefighters and rescuers in specialised rescue techniques.

Hugh Price-Hughes

Hugh Price-Hughes is a career fire-fighter with 17 years experience and has served in various disciplines. Starting his career as an aircraft fire-fighter in the air force then moving into the civilian brigades first as an Advanced Life Support Paramedic, then moving to the C.B.D of Johannesburg as a Station Commander where he established the Johannesburg Special Operations Division. Hugh then moved into training and resigned in 2006 as Divisional Chief of Training for the City of Johannesburg.

Hugh is a qualified Urban Search and Rescue Instructor and has been deployed as a member of the South African USAR team to four Earthquakes ( India, Algeria, Iran and Pakistan) filling the role of Operations Commander during the Iran Earthquake.

Hugh is now a director of Disaster and Rescue Training and manages the operations and all Technical Rescue Training.

Pankil Patel

Pankil Patel is currently a senior flight doctor with International SOS. He has training and experience in clinical medicine with expertise in emergency medicine, trauma, disaster medicine, aviation medicine, tactical medicine and medical evacuations. He is currently a member of Rescue SA - Foreign Disaster Response Team and an American Heart Association instructor for their BLS,ACLS and PALS courses. During his career he has flown for the Johannesburg Flight for Life service, worked in the Johannesburg General Hospital Trauma Unit and various A & E units.

He was a member of the foreign disaster response team to Pakistan's earthquake disaster in 2005 and was deeply involved with Gauteng Provincial Disaster Management during the recent xenophobic disaster. He has vast experience in working within Africa and has been a member of a number of expeditions through Africa.

Dr. Patel holds a postgraduate diploma in anaesthetics and a postgraduate diploma in primary emergency care and is currently completeing a master degree in emergency medicine at WITS.