Paul Kelly

Partnership & Development Officer Location: Dunedin

I originally trained as a mechanical fitter, spending 10 years with New Zealand railways. Since then I have had a number of different jobs mostly in engineering and construction.

I first dealt with a problem in the outdoors when tramping as a fourteen year old and having to sort out a hypothermic mate.  My first SAR experience with was as an 18-year-old hunter lost on Stewart Island in very bad conditions. This event has given me an insight and empathy as to what it is like to be the lost subject.

In 1991, I joined Red Cross in Dunedin for something to do and discovered that they were very involved in both SAR and Civil Defence and that there was a cross over in training and in operations.  I was involved with the Red Cross group for 14 years, and I learned valuable lessons in teamwork, leadership and training as well as how it all comes together in real operations.  During this time, we with Red Cross I was involved in searches, rescue, civil defence callouts as well as welfare at a couple of police scenes and rural fires.

I have kept up my involvement in SAR after leaving Red Cross through a SAR group in Dunedin called the Lost Souls. I am a member of both the first response search group and first response rescue group.  As a search manager, I am normally in the operations roll.  Because of my involvement in the different aspects of SAR including an appreciation of swift water and dogs, I feel I have a very good overview of SAR.   This greater understanding helps me in my work with SARINZ and certainly makes me aware of the value of all the different SAR disciplines and how they interconnect and complement each other.

When Ross Gordon arrived on the scene with new thinking and approaches, he captured my imagination - especially with the tracking, search methods and CIMS.  I feel very privileged to be part of spreading Ross’ vision through the SAR community as an instructor in TCA, Tracking and Search Methods working for SARINZ.

Hunting and fishing are my main outdoor pursuits when not working. I like challenges and opportunities and see the glass as either full or empty.

I am married to the lovely Chrissy and have three grown up children.

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