Dive Rescue Series: Dive Team Trainees Learn to Make Rescue a Reality
Features
RESCUE TECHNIQUES
On June 3, 1985, six Ulster County, NY, deputy sheriffs embarked on an in-water rapid deployment search and rescue training program. The 13-day, 165-hour course took them from upstate New York to Rhode Island and back. The goal was to train these men to become a rapid response dive rescue team that would serve the upper Catskill area.
The team consisted of four divers and two tenders, who were all beginners in the field of underwater rescue. They had no diving or in-water rescue experience before taking this intense training program that was led by Lifeguard Systems Inc., a rescue training company.
The Ulster County sheriff knew that he had chosen dedicated men who would successfully complete the training program. His plan was to provide Ulster and neighboring counties with a “topnotch” in-water dive rescue team.
Because the sheriff was familiar with the Mammalian Diving Reflex (see “In-Water Firefighting Units,” FIRE ENGINEERING, October 1985) and cold water resuscitation, he knew it was possible for a rapid response dive rescue team to respond quickly and professionally in order to save the life of a submerged victim. If a victim is found in fresh water within 45 minutes or less of underwater exposure time, a removal and resuscitation is possible with no detrimental effects (depending, of course, on the water temperature and the victim’s age).
It was my duty to teach and train the six Ulster County deputy sheriffs to become effective and efficient in all underwater procedures and hopefully make in-water rescue a reality.
We agreed that the Ulster County men would be trained as a hightech tactical team. On Monday, the first morning of the program, each man was issued dry diving suits for cold and contaminated water protection.
As part of the course, they had to learn to coordinate their new equipment: masks, fins, scuba (self-contained underwater breathing apparatus) regulators, rescue buoyancy compensators, weights and weight belts, knives, underwater lights, etc. This equipment would be their new partner for the next 13 days, and it was imperative that they had the practical experience of donning and doffing. The deputies performed repetitive training exercises of donning and doffing the gear until they were able to do it “blindfolded.”
The dive rescue students were given classroom presentations on physics, physiology, and medical topics so they could understand the change that occurs within and around their bodies as they enter and operate under the water. Some of the dive-related topics covered during this extensive program included: Boyle’s Law, Dalton’s Law, Archimedes’ Principle, and hypothermia.
After they were taught correct swimming methods, the students reinforced these lessons by swimming one-mile laps in a local pool. During this phase of training, they were also instructed in correct breathing techniques and operational procedures involving the use of in-water weights. This training remained intense until the rescuers were able to cope with any of the problems they might encounter while in water, including near drowning.
Emphasis was placed on avoiding panic at all costs. The men were taught to stop, think, get control, and then proceed. It is imperative to always have control of your own physical and mental being while in the water. Incorrect actions may cause possible dive-related injuries (i.e., lung overpressure injuries, air embolism, and possible drownings).
The two men assigned to be the dive tenders were also emergency medical technicians (EMTs). They would tend to their divers from the surface and ensure their safety by means of a 250-foot, 3/8-inch line that was attached to the divers’ buoyancy compensator with a quick release snap. The men were taught all diver tender rope signals and used them repeatedly so that they would become second nature. A true rescue can work smoothly only when the diver and his tender are in total communication.
Photos by wait Hendrick
The key word in rescue is time. Every second counts. There is no time for misunderstanding, error, or misjudgment. Every diver needs confidence to make rescue a reality.
By the third day, the deputy sheriffs were in open water. Although the men worked independently, the instructor and I were always by their side to ensure maximum safety. Tending lines were attached to each diver, and communication between diver and tender was practiced.
By Friday, the fifth day of the course, the team was on its way to Baltic, CT, to make a black water river dive. Not too deep—just 25 feet—but as black as can be. There was only six inches of visibility if the sediment on the bottom was not disturbed.
That evening, the team left for Kingston, RI, for an ocean experience. This would cause different buoyancy problems due to the change from fresh water to salt water, as well as other minor differences, such as surge (the ocean’s waves), the effects of the salt on the diving equipment, and the obstruction caused by plant and animal life on the ocean floor.
On Saturday and Sunday the men went through an extensive 19-hour diver rescue course along with divers from the University of Rhode Island. The program included: diver first aid, in-water mouth-to-mouth, cerebral cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CCPR), the use of oxygen, spinal boards, first-aid kits, and small boat handling. This was followed by rescue scenarios, so that the men could have complete hands-on experience.
Sunday night the team returned to Kingston, NY. On Monday morning they received a lecture on surface management and rescue profiling of the beach and water site. Their next project was to find small mannequin victims that had been placed in different waterways throughout the county.
They arrived on site. They worked as a team to survey and plan the area. Divers were dressed and deployed for the search. Two of the divers were put in the water while a third was dressed and ready as a safety backup.
After 20 minutes, when time was up, the divers returned to the surface and conferred: “Why didn’t we find the victim?” They decided on an alternative plan— deploying one diver—and the victim was found. The team then had to ask themselves: “What went wrong the first time?” They were beginning to realize the urgency of accurate site management and planning.
We started over again with a new site, new conditions, and a new victim. Everything was timed. The men had no more than 10 minutes to dress and profile. There was a maximum of 20 minutes dive time. Again, two divers were deployed and a third was ready as a safety.
All right! It took them only 12 minutes to find their victim. The total time since arrival at the site was 20 minutes.
On Wednesday at 9 P.M. the students were home. We called them and said “Let’s go on a night maneuver.” The river was dark and there was minimal lighting. The team was dressed and profiled within 8 minutes. The divers were deployed, and 17 minutes later they had their child mannequin.
But, where was the other mannequin? There were two. The divers were deployed again, and 1 1/2 hours later they were still searching. No group is perfect. The search was called off and scheduled for the next day.
Friday, we responded to the base of a waterfall and searched for a child mannequin. The men were dressed and ready to go with their safety backup within 8 minutes. They had successfully completed 8 out of 10 rescue scenarios in 72 hours, so confidence was high. The team was operating smoothly and efficiently. Forty minutes later, the team leader brought his divers up and announced: “We could stay here for the next two days; we have searched this area and there is no victim here.”
He was right! This time I had not placed a mannequin in the water. It was a test of ability and confidence. They searched and surfaced knowing that there was no possible way they could have missed the mannequin. It was almost time for them to graduate.
On Saturday, the Ulster County sheriff’s office had a demonstration for the press and other law enforcement officers. The men worked with the Kingston EMS on a 21-minute scenario that showed all the skills they had mastered during the past 13 days of hard work.
Congratulations to the Ulster County sheriff and his six deputies. Even though the dive rescue team is new and still has a lot to learn, they are extremely capable and ready to save a life in order to make rescue a reality.
At presstime, the Ulster County dive rescue team has been involved in two drownings. In the first incident, the team found the victim, but the call came in 8 hours too late to save the individual. The team’s second attempt was in time to find the victim and regain a heartbeat. Unfortunately, due to a high alcohol base, the victim could not be saved by hospital medical personnel.
