Every time there’s a disaster in Malibu—and it happens more than any of us would like to think—there’s one group of volunteers who show up to risk life and limb: Malibu Search and Rescue. From cars over the side of canyons to stranded hikers, MSAR members have braved the elements and risked life and limb for Malibu’s many adventurous residents and visitors. Now, some have been recognized for their efforts.
Nine members of the Lost Hills Malibu Sheriff’s Station have been singled out for their exemplary service in protecting the public. In Sacramento Friday, the sheriff’s personnel received prestigious awards from the California Reserve Peace Officers Association in recognition of their hard work and bravery.
“The recognition of the Malibu SAR reserves and volunteers emphasizes the tremendous sacrifices these dedicated rescuers endure to help their communities, often risking their lives to save others,” MSAR Operations Leader David Katz told The Malibu Times.
The highest honor—Medal of Valor—was given to Katz, along with Jack Garden and Thad Woodward, who all volunteer with MSAR. The three men put their own lives in jeopardy four years ago rescuing four stranded hikers at Malibu Creek State Park during a blinding rainstorm. The search and rescue volunteers never gave up—even during torrential rains—to reach the stranded hikers. The rescuers battled swift water, heavy winds, poor visibility and freezing temperatures near the rock pool starting at 6:30 p.m. and attempted to reach the victims for almost eight hours. At 2:30 the next morning while the rain kept pounding, a helicopter crew and other medics were able to hoist the hikers to safety.
MSAR’s Sergeant Tui Wright and Kevin Augarten were singled out as Reserve Coordinators of the Year. Wright is a 30-year veteran of the LASD and has served as reserve coordinator for 10 years, locally. Augarten has been with the department for 31 years, serving as assistant reserve coordinator for the past 20 years. Wright and Augarten are responsible for a 160-person team that includes uniform patrol reserve deputies, civilian volunteer specialists, mountain rescue reserves, disaster communications personnel and explorers. Both are known to participate in rescues at all hours of the day—even in the worst weather conditions—and are committed to serving their team and community with the most up-to-date emergency preparedness procedures and techniques.
The prestigious search and rescue member of the year went to MSAR’s Reserve Deputy Stephen Marshall who has only been serving for three years, but gives nearly 100 hours of service to his community each month. He also heads up the team’s fundraising, which not only includes raising funds for the volunteer organization’s equipment but also for their public awareness campaign to fight breast cancer. MSAR participates in The Pink Patch Project, which sells law enforcement and first responder patches colored pink with proceeds going to the effort to end breast cancer.
Distinguished service awards were also presented to Mark Stevenson, Daniel Farrell and posthumously to Jacob Castroll, a sheriff’s reserve volunteer who died one year ago while participating in the 2017 World Police and Fire Games. The late Castroll became a reserve sheriff at age 60, which Katz said demonstrated he was “very passionate about helping.”
Stevenson, a civilian volunteer specialist with MSAR, was recognized for his heroic actions in saving a life. Last year, while driving late at night, an off-duty Stevenson came upon a woman’s body in the middle of a dark intersection. She had apparently been hit by a car and was near death. Stevenson cleared the scene with the help of bystanders and performed lifesaving procedures alone while the bystanders stood watch keeping the intersection clear of other cars. Due to Stevenson’s heroism, the victim is alive and making a recovery.
Farrell received the 2018 California Reserve Peace Officers Association Distinguished Service Award for giving his time and expertise—all unpaid— to build web applications that the LASD Malibu/Lost Hills Station personnel say help them be more effective and improve their response time to life-saving calls. Those who nominated Farrell for honors say he has saved hundreds of hours of paper work that now help the department as the busiest rescue team in California. MSAR made a record 162 calls in 2017 and is on pace for another record-setting year.
This is Malibu Search and Rescue Operations Leader Katz’ second Medal of Valor from the association. In 2003, Katz risked his life when he jumped and tackled an active gunman at the Van Nuys Courthouse. His bravery received worldwide attention as it was captured on camera by news crews on scene during the murder trial of actor Robert Blake.
Editor’s note: An earlier version of this story misspelled reserve coordinator of the year Kevin Augarten’s name.
