BDMLR has an international reputation for being one of the world’s leading marine mammal rescue organisations. International organisations and governments can draw on this experience and expertise by contracting BDMLR to supply rescue courses and equipment in your home country.
British Divers Marine Life Rescue has been training people to rescue and provide first aid to marine mammals since 1997. Over those decades, our trainers have gained a huge amount of experience in wildlife rescue, and that is woven throughout our training programme. As new insights are discovered, they are incorporated into our ever-improving training courses.
BDMLR is an internationally respected NGO and has been asked by governments and/or wildlife organisations around the world to train their staff and the public to form or improve their response capacity. To date, BDMLR has been contracted by: Canada, the Falkland Islands, Cape Verde, Saudi Arabia, Denmark, France, Gibraltar, Italy, Ireland, United Arab Emirates, Kazakhstan, the USA, Kenya, Malta, and Egypt.
Courses are tailored to the specific cetaceans or seals encountered wherever you happen to be in the world, and we can further support you with specialist equipment from whale refloatation pontoon systems to seal bags – click this link for details: bdmlr.org.uk/buy-a-pontoon-set
Courses can be one or two days long depending on your requirements. and comprise lectures in the morning, followed by an afternoon practical session where participants are trained to use their newfound knowledge and skills in assessment, first aid and how to use specialist equipment. These are generally run outdoors, so suitable clothing (depending on climate, weather conditions and sea temperature) is required. We will guide you through the process in a straightforward way so you and your staff/volunteers get the most out of the day. Courses can also be run in several locations depending on the time frame for BDMLR instructors to be in country.
Host organisations will be responsible for organising the team’s travel, accommodation, and any special transport needs. Our team is very adaptable and able to cope with harsh and inhospitable environments; however, bear in mind we may be travelling with some oversized and heavy equipment, which will need to be catered for.
If you already have a set of pontoons and would like support to run refresher training or stranding exercises, this can also be accommodated.
If you would like to discuss running a course contact info@bdmlr.org.uk