The Isle of Man’s search and rescue capability has been praised by a leading authority in the location of missing persons.

Tony Emsley visited the Island last week to assess a Douglas firefighter in the final phase of his development training course.

Mr Emsley has a lifetime’s experience in the field, having worked with the RAF’s search and rescue unit for 23 years, and for the past 13 years he has held a senior role at Outreach Rescue, a UK company that delivers specialist training for firefighters.

During his recent visit, the North Wales-based training manager said he was impressed with the Island’s multi-agency approach when responding to missing person call-outs.

He also praised the strong working relationship that exists between the Isle of Man Constabulary, Fire and Rescue Service, Civil Defence Unit, Coastguard and Search and Rescue Dog Association.

Mr Emsley says: ‘The set-up in the Island is very good and the levels of co-operation and trust between the agencies is a key factor when it comes to ensuring community safety’

He's also impressed with how officers and volunteers from different organisations can be called upon to pool their personnel, assets and expertise to deal with specific emergency situations.