Deputy Chief Christian Long urges Blacksburg residents to volunteer with local rescue squad

Christian Long, Deputy Chief of Field Operations for the Blacksburg Volunteer Rescue Squad, outlined the unit's services and urged residents to apply as volunteers.

Long said the volunteer agency 'which has served Blacksburg and surrounding Montgomery County since 1950' responds most often to medical calls and also handles vehicle extrication, swift-water and dive rescue, vertical rope rescue, search-and-rescue and cave rescue. "Our most frequent call is medical calls," he said. "We do vehicle extrication, swift water, and that includes some dive rescue as well, vertical rope rescue, search and rescue, and, cave rescue."

Why it matters: The squad relies on unpaid volunteers to staff ambulances and technical-rescue responses across the area. Long said he and the chief and other deputy chiefs oversee "approximately a 150 volunteers," underscoring the scale of the volunteer workforce and the squad's ongoing need for recruits.

Long said the squad coordinates responses through the Christiansburg New River Valley 911 dispatch center, which helps determine which units respond "just kinda depending on what the call is." He also said the squad works closely with local police departments and fire departments when incidents require multiagency response.

On recruitment, Long said, "We are always taking applications for, new volunteers." He invited residents to visit the squad's website to apply or request a ride-along to see daily operations.

Long closed by encouraging residents to say hello when they see squad members in the community and to reach out if they are interested in joining: "We'll be more than happy to talk to you and answer any questions you might have. We would love to schedule you for 1 of those."