I spent almost 3 years in Search and Rescue with the Washoe County Sheriff's Department HASTY team. I was involved in open water rescue, underwater rescue (Diver), swift water rescue, and backcountry rescue. We were known as more a "strike team" in that we had higher standards for training. So we got to play a lot with helicopters and specialized vehicles.
I can tell you that if you have no life (no kids, no wife, no relationship, etc.) then it is totally worth it. But when you have other attachments, you will find it hard to get out on calls. The biggest frustration is the "Code 4"'s that we would get more than 75% of the time. It is always the same, you get a call and you all mobilize for a missing person, only to find that the person is at home or was only a little bit behind at the trailhead. We had a situation where we were in active search mode for someone. The sergeant was there coordinating and it was quite a show with boats, a helicopter and divers staging just off the shore. This attracted a guy who walked up and asked what was going on. The sergeant explained they were looking for someone. When the guy asked who they were looking for and the sergeant told him, the guy said "Hey, that's me!"
I suspect that they were looking to you for SVU (Special Vehicles Unit) to assist with missing hikers and such. The benefits would be a police ID, which would show up on the CLETS system along with discounts via pro deals for some of the best equipment in the industry. But the time commitment is substantial. You have to be active, that is the thing. That means heading out to every call.
Ohh.. and get used to picking up dead bodies and miscellaneous body parts. If you have no problems with the feel and smell of biological components, then you are golden.