BRYAN CO., OK - The way Bryan County runs their search and rescue missions is changing. It all started after a search for a missing boy near Colbert did not go as effectively as planned in April 2010. But it’s not just one agency that’s working to fix missing persons policies, but several organizations working together in Bryan County.

"This was a totally and completely disorganized search,” said Bryan County Sheriff Bill Sturch about the search for three-year-old Collin Hannan.

When Sheriff Sturch arrived on the scene south of Colbert on Highway 92 last April, he found there was plenty of volunteers and help in the search, but not much organization. He said it wasn't any one agency's fault, but all due to a lack of procedure.

"There was probably 500 people out there, cars parked for half a mile, people doing their own searches and fire departments and that's not the way to do those things,” said Sturch.

They found the boy later that night, but it was a wakeup call not only for the Sheriff's Office, but local law enforcement and the Bryan County Emergency Management Office as well.

"What we're trying to do is train together, be on the same sheet of music so to speak, so that in the event of an incident occurring we know what we need to do, and work together as a group,” said Bryan County Emergency Management Coordinator James Dalton.

Dalton, along with Durant's Police Chief Durward Cooke and Sheriff's deputy Lieutenant Kevin Holt, attended a special training session in Oklahoma City earlier this month to learn the latest and best techniques for search and rescue missions.

The three men were part of an overall group of only 32 people from several agencies all over the State of Oklahoma. The training was through the National Association for Search and Rescue, NASAR. Part of the workshops was learning about different statistics and patterns that can be calculated on a search and rescue mission.

"There are formulas that we use when we get there based on the age of the individual, their physical condition, how long they've been gone, the lay of the land and we figure all that in and come up with a scheme,” said Dalton.

He said they not only learned about the patterns and formulas for missing person searches, but how to create a chain of command and procedures when someone does go missing. Dalton said having a plan in place that all agencies know and can follow will save time be more effective.

"The quicker we can get deployed the better the possibility of having a good outcome is,” said Dalton.

The Emergency Management Office said they are trying to send three or four more Bryan County officials to the same training in October 2010. They hope to have a full team and new equipment for this task force by next year.