Kevin Soukup, Rotary President Jim Brown and Christina Skaggs talk after the Search and Rescue presentation.

GRIDLEY (MPG) – Gridley Rotarians learned some interesting facts about Butte County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue at the club’s weekly luncheon on Feb. 20.

The Butte County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue’s Christina Skaggs and Kevin Soukup gave the presentation. 

The Search and Rescue team started after a 3-year-old went missing in Cohasset in 1961. The Sheriff’s bulletin went out over AM radio and hundreds of people responded resulting in “a hot mess,” according to Skaggs. The child was located safely, but the sheriff recognized the need to organize an official team. 

Emergencies that Search and Rescue respond to include fire evacuations, missing persons, water rescues and drivers stuck in flooded road dips. 

Part of Search and Rescue’s efforts is to facilitate the Special Needs Awareness Program (SNAP) evacuating persons who cannot get out on their own. Those with special needs can register in the program and will be evacuated first. A Special Needs Awareness Program packet is available online at buttecounty.net/1790/Special-Needs-Awareness-Program or by calling 530-538-7538.

Other specialty teams include K-9, helicopter, over-the-edge, swift water, marine, motorized and drone. 

All the volunteers have full-time jobs and are on-call 24-7.

“We love what we do,” Skaggs said.

The team had more than 10,696 service hours to the county in 2024, all at no charge. This is equivalent to five full-time Sheriff’s deputies. More than 4,000 hours were spent helping evacuate residents during the Park Fire.   

Skaggs and Soukup both underlined that Butte County Sheriff Kory Honea could not do everything he does without the help of Search and Rescue.  

Water rescues are the most frequent need in Butte County, such as the two kayakers that went missing in December at Thermalito Afterbay. High winds and dense underwater vegetation made the effort extremely challenging. 

With all the work that Search and Rescue has accomplished, the team has outgrown its current location on the Skyway and funds are desperately needed for a new facility. None of the Measure H or Proposition 36 funds go to Search and Rescue.

As a result, the team is launching Operation Rescue Ready, raising money for new property and a new building, preferably in south Chico. The goal is $1.5 million. 

A project fundraiser will be an April 5 black-tie gala at the Sierra Nevada Big Room in Chico, which includes food, live music, and both live and silent auctions. Sponsorships are available by calling 530-513-7231. Tickets are on sale at eventbrite.com.