Firefighters practice water rescue
Photo by MANDI BATEMAN South Boundary Firefighters practice water rescue.
South Boundary Firefighters participate in water rescue training on July 26 at the mouth of Deep Creek. Clockwise from right: After the first throw, the throwbags were filled with water to give them weight; the rope is thrown as close as possible to the mock victim; the mock victim is pulled to shore.
Photo by MANDI BATEMAN Pulling the mock victim to shore.
Photo by MANDI BATEMAN The firefighters practiced getting the rope as close to the mock victim as possible.
Photo by MANDI BATEMAN The mock victims played the part of victims trying to capsize the boat in mock panic.
Photo by MANDI BATEMAN The firefighters were only able to sink the boat once they got it close enough to shore to stand.
Photo by MANDI BATEMAN The firefighters practiced throwing the bag downstream from the mock victim.
Photo by MANDI BATEMAN Pulling in a mock victim.
Photo by MANDI BATEMAN The small boat was surprisingly stable, despite the mock victims trying to pull it over, something that can happen in a real life situation.
Photo by MANDI BATEMAN The training took place at the mouth of Deep Creek.
Photo by MANDI BATEMAN Practicing pulling the mock victim into the boat.
BONNERS FERRY — South Boundary Firefighters gathered at the mouth of Deep Creek on July 26, for training on water rescue. The hulking fire engines parked along the water’s edge and the firefighters circled around South Boundary Fire Chief Tony Rohrwasser, ready to practice on a hot evening.
“I wanted to get the other rigs down too, so we can go over where everything is at, so we have all our throwbags and stuff like that,” said Rohrwasser to his team.
He explained the procedures about calls regarding a water rescue. There are five members of South Boundary Fire that are part of the Swiftwater Rescue Team, including himself.
“The county has a Swiftwater Rescue team which is under the direction of, and activated by Boundary County Search and Dive Rescue. This team is made up of members of Search and Rescue, Boundary Ambulance, Boundary County Sheriff’s Office, Kootenai Tribe, and South Boundary Fire,” explained Rohrwasser.
The other Swiftwater members from South Boundary are Allen Merritt, Geoff Kessler, Michael Powers, and Wayne Wilkerson. Other South Boundary firefighters train in case they are called upon take part in shore rescue duties, for both water and ice rescues.
“They train on how to make patient contact, which is the safest option for the patient and the rescuer, how to use throw bags on ice and water, and most importantly how to keep a safe scene by limiting personnel without proper training or equipment within the rescue area,” said Rohrwasser.
The bodies of water that they could be called on to assist at include McArthur Lake and Deep Creek. Both of these fall within their jurisdiction.
“During times of the year, that can be pretty nasty,” said Rohrwasser about Deep Creek. “I don’t see much chance of us getting our little boat out in stuff like that. But I thought we should go through it.”
The idea is to cover all possible scenarios before they happen, and that is what they set out to accomplish.
Before hitting the water, they also discussed the order in which to attempt to reach someone that is in trouble on the water, as well as safety gear for the firefighters, including life jackets and helmets.
Then they talked about the importance of spotters, especially with swift water, like someone upstream to watch for debris, such as logs or another victim, and another downstream to watch for the person or people in need of rescue in case the first attempt to reach them failed.
“You always have got to have a plan, to a plan, to a plan,” said Wilkerson, “so have a couple people downstream, so if that first rope misses, or something else happens, we have got backups.”
They also discussed protocols for being in fast running water such as not trying to stand in a very strong current even if it is very shallow, or keeping your legs out in front of you with knees bent, to help cushion and deflect off of objects.
As the talking portion of the training ended, they began to pull out the equipment.
“We can practice out here if we want to,” Rohrwasser said, “but we got the water out there, so let’s get out there and try throwing our throwbags.”
The firefighters proceeded to the water, with two getting in the water to play the part of victims. The others on shore practiced throwing the throwbags to them, talking to them, and eventually rowing to them in a rowboat. The two mock victims played the part well, responding to the calls of the trainees, and simulating being carried away by the current. When the boat arrived, they played the part of panicked people trying to crawl in the boat, testing how difficult it would be to overturn. As it turned out, the boat was quite stable and resisted the attempts.
“It is a rare incidence that we get a swiftwater rescue, so the more we practice this stuff, the better we get,” said Wilkerson. “It is kind of hard to make things realistic, but we do what we can in situations like today with no fast water, but it is good initial training for these guys. For every throw you get, there is a little more experience, a little more muscle memory.”
At the end of the day, the firefighters went home with a little more training, or practice, and better equipped to handle water rescues that they may get called upon.
“We always try to train in the environment that we are called to work in. This means heavy fire gear in 90 degree temperatures,” said Rohrwasser. “This training was a nice break on a hot day.”