“Be prepared.”

These are words to live by, and not just for Boy Scouts. A new rescue group in Beaufort County, the Beaufort County Special Operations Unit, is putting that motto into practice in an awesome way.

While Beaufort County already has a strong group of skilled first responders who are trained in specialized, highly technical rescue skills, this group seeks to spread that knowledge to members of various fire departments and rescue squads throughout the county.

The hope is by having members trained in these skills, and able to assist each other when emergencies arise, local first responders should be able to quickly and efficiently respond to almost any conceivable emergency that could be paged across the airwaves.

We should all feel a little safer knowing that these dedicated first responders, many of whom work tirelessly on a volunteer basis, are doing everything in their power to be prepared for any given emergency. Especially this time of year, during the holidays, when their duties and service to others might pull them away from their families, we owe them our gratitude.

The skills they will be learning in this new group, such as grain bin rescue, high-angle rescues and water rescues, aren’t skills they’ll use every day. But the emergencies that could require those specialized skills are very real possibilities here in Beaufort County.

In some cases, these emergencies would require outside assistance from other agencies throughout the state. By having these resources and trained personnel close to home, our local first responders will cut that response time tremendously, possibly saving lives in the process.

To the folks with the foresight to get this group together, a job well done. To the men and women who will be a part of this new unit, thank you for your time and dedication to your fellow residents. Your hard work is appreciated, and there is no question that the new special operations unit will be a great asset to Beaufort County when its people need it the most.