When weather turns bad, those who work in emergency services still need to get to the job, and that is when the Inclement Weather Driving Team shows off its skills

They love their rigs.

They love helping others.

And when they can combine those passions, well, it can make for a compelling story.

Bobby Calizon is a member of the Inclement Weather Driving Team, a volunteer with Clark County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue. Last month, during the ice storm, he and his colleagues were called into action.

The Inclement Weather Driving Team heads out all over the region to pick up essential workers who need to get to a hospital, a clinic, or other emergency services when bad weather wreaks havoc on the area.

Calizon picked up a physician’s assistant in Portland to bring her to her job in Vancouver.

“At some point, you will help someone else,” Calizon told the PA. “I get you where you need to be and you’re going to help someone else.”

Calizon is not qualified to treat patients, but he is qualified to drive during tough weather conditions.
Later that day, Calizon picked up the same PA to drive her home.

“She says, ‘You know what? You helped 20 people today.’ She was able to help 20 patients, and I was a part of that,” Calizon said. “That felt good.”

Last year, the Inclement Weather Driving Team received a letter of appreciation from a surgeon, stating that the service saved a person’s life. The surgeon would not have been able to get to the hospital in time.

Clark County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue is a volunteer, nonprofit organization that works under the umbrella and authority of the sheriff’s department. The Search and Rescue team has several specialties, including a K-9 unit, mounted patrol (horses), a dive team for underwater recovery, drones, as well as technical rescue (ropes). 

It also has the Inclement Weather Driving Team. 

Last month, during that ice storm, the team completed 146 missions.

“I grew up in the 4-wheel drive industry. I love playing outside with trucks,” Calizon said. “It makes it a hobby you turn into something useful and productive in society. You get to play with full-size toys and get to help people out at the same time.”

Diane Seymour, retired from law enforcement, is on the team and also takes in the phone calls asking for rides.

“Having a purpose,” Seymour said of why she volunteers. “When everybody else is stuck at home, you get to help solve the problem.”

Isaac Yocum has been with Search and Rescue for almost 13 years. He remembers being on board when the Inclement Weather Driving Team formed some time around the winter of 2013/14.

“We started off partnering with Legacy Salmon Creek (Medical Center). They asked us if we could provide hospital staff rides to work when the weather got bad,” Yocum recalled.

At the time, there were only five or six drivers. But they would head out to Yacolt, Battle Ground, Camas, Washougal, Hockinson, or wherever to bring a person into work. Oh, and while many think of doctors and nurses, a hospital also needs its cooks and custodial workers, too. The driving team will pick up anyone who works at the hospital who needs a ride. 

Well, usually.

Sometimes the weather is even too tricky for the experts. Last month, the team did complete 146 trips but Seymour was bummed that she had to say no to a few requests. Ice is so much more difficult to maneuver on than snow, and some of the locations were just too far off the path to send a driver.

Yocum grew up in California, but was around snow all the time, enjoying winter sports activities in the Tahoe region. When he moved to the Northwest, he went through his first ice storm and learned quickly that it is just not the same as snow.

“I gained a great respect for it right away. The more I’ve driven in it, the more I get comfortable with it, but I understand not two areas are the same,” Yocum said. “I can go a half mile, and it’s completely different conditions.”

Yocum is also in charge of ensuring every driver on the team is up to date on things such as proper tire tread and other vehicle maintenance. The team now has 22 drivers.

Of course, they all say that their vehicles are the best option for each mission.

“We know Jeeps are the best,” said Seymour, who drives a Jeep Wrangler.

Yocum drives a Lexus GS 470 4-wheel drive SUV. Calizon drives a Toyota 4runner. Others on the team have Subarus or full-size pick-up trucks.

“There is always friendly ribbing and rivalry,” Yocum said. “We realize what the mission is and what the goal is. The bigger issue is the driver. You can have the most capable vehicle in the world but if the person doesn’t understand the conditions the vehicle is useless.”

Inclement weather happens in the region, but not enough that everyone gets accustomed to driving in it. Yocum said he encourages all of his team members to take advantage of bad weather and practice driving in it when they aren’t on missions for the driving team.
“Find an empty parking lot and drive in it,” Yocum said. “See how your car reacts. The more they do it, the better they get.”

The program expanded from that first year to now include employees at Vancouver Clinic and CRESA, such as 9-1-1 dispatchers.

“They’re blown away that we’re volunteers,” Seymour said of those who get rides from the Driving Team. 

The employees knew that the service was available to them, but they had no idea it was an all-volunteer driving force that got it done.
“They’re very appreciative. They’re shocked that we’re able to get around and drive around in this stuff,” Yocum said. “They are super grateful they can get to work safely and know they have a way to get home, as well, so they’re not stuck at work.”

Being on the Search and Rescue team is a way for Yocum to give back, he said. He also is a self-described “adrenaline junkie.”

Getting to drive in tough conditions fulfills that need.

“I get to help out and do things not everyone else gets to,” Yocum said. “It gives me a good excuse, when it’s snowing, to go out and drive around and have fun in it when everyone else is at home.”

Note: While the team is under the authority of the Clark County Sheriff’s Office, the Clark County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue team is an all-volunteer, nonprofit organization. To donate or to volunteer, go to: https://ccsosarwa.org/