james croft:
I think I am going to like this...........
James, you’re a funny guy. As a team player, I will bite a bullet, take one for the team, and hit the high points here...
-------------------------------------
... He has trained the majority of the instructors that are
teaching at the other facilities in Chicagoland. So I
promise they are getting trained by the best ...
-------------------------------------
LET’S TAKE A LOOK AT CHICAGOLAND TRAINING...
Sergeant Alane M. Stoffregen
Chicago Police Department
22 year veteran
Sergeant Alane Stoffregen, a department scuba diver, was participating in a Marine Unit training exercise when an accident occurred about a mile off Navy Pier.. Sergeant Stoffregen and another officer were conducting deep water dives in Lake Michigan. After surfacing from the dive, Stoffregen lost consciousness before reaching the boat. Officers aided in removing her from the water and transporting her to shore. She was then rushed to the hospital where attempts to revive her were unsuccessful. Sergeant Stoffregen was certified as a master diver and was proficient in open water navigation, underwater first aid and water rescues. Two weeks before her death, she had vacationed in Aruba and got the chance to dive at the wreck of the Antilles. During her 22 year career she had received forty-seven honorable mentions and four complimentary letters from her superiors. She was survived by her mother, a sister and five brothers.
Another officer involved in the training exercise was released from Northwestern Memorial Hospital after being treated for exhaustion for trying to rescue Sergeant Stoffregen.
Firefighter Eugene Blackmon
Chicago Fire Department
Firefighter Eugene Blackmon was a diver on Chicago Fire Department's elite Squad 5. His license plate read "ILSAVU." Firefighter Blackmon was killed while on a mission to recover the bodies of two civilians.
Firefighter Blackmon and his SCUBA partner, both fully equipped with diving gear and a rope, entered the water to assist the fire department’s Air and Sea Rescue divers, who were already diving. Firefighter Blackmon and his partner entered the river at the location where the two civilians were reported to have gone down to perform an independent sweep search pattern. The search lasted approximately 10 to 15 minutes at an approximate depth of 25 to 30 feet. Due to zero visibility and the underwater current, Firefighter Blackmon and his partner decided to surface and return to the staging area where they changed over to their underwater communication masks and received further instructions from the dive supervisor.
Once they returned to the staging area, the dive tender (back-up diver) changed their tanks, assisted with the removal of their gear, provided Gatorade to drink, and placed a 50 foot long, 4-inch round air float (rubber-jacketed fire hose) from shore to the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter that had just arrived. After a brief conversation with the dive supervisor, the divers decided to remove their SCUBA gear and free float to the Coast Guard cutter using the 4-inch float as a guide and flotation device, determining this would be the easiest way to enter the boat since it did not have a swim platform. Wearing his weight belt, Firefighter Blackmon began his free float to the boat, holding on to his Buoyancy Control Device (BCD), tank, and the 4-inch air float as flotation devices. The weight belt consisted of three 10-pound lead weights secured around his waist. As Firefighter Blackmon was approaching the boat he lost grip of the flotation devices and instantly went under the water due to the 30-pound weight belt that he did not release. Blackmon’s partner immediately went down after him, free diving with just his wet suit which created a buoyancy problem and limited his dive depth. After two attempts to reach Blackmon, he surfaced and called for assistance from the Air and Sea Rescue divers. One diver from the Air and Sea Rescue team descended to the area where Firefighter Blackmon went down and located him. As Blackmon was pulled close to the water surface, his dive partner grabbed him. The Air and Sea diver lost his grip on Firefighter Blackmon while adjusting his own equipment, and because of the 30-pound weight belt around the Blackmon’s waist, the dive partner was unable to hold on to him, and he descended for a second time. Firefighter Blackmon was located and pulled from the water approximately 10 to 15 minutes later. Resuscitation efforts were not successful.
Firefighter Michael "Micky" Drobitsch
Chicago Fire Department
17 year veteran
Firefighter Michael "Micky" Drobitsch was a firefighter and an experienced member of the Chicago Fire Department's elite Air-Sea Rescue Unit. He died after a routine scuba training exercise in Lake Michigan about 25 feet off Meigs Field.
Firefighter Drobitsch was seen by his partner moving rapidly to the surface. The dive buddy followed Drobitsch to the surface where Drobitsch removed his mask. Other firefighters brought the victim to shore and administered CPR. At that time, the victim did not have a pulse and was not breathing. Paramedics were subsequently called and administered advanced life-saving techniques before transporting the victim to the hospital. Less than an hour later he was pronounced dead in a press release by the department public information officer. Firefighter Drobitsch’s dive buddy was also admitted to the hospital as a precaution.
Three PSD fatalities in one community in less than ten years. A record!
Mike, I know you are trying to do the best thing for the public safety divers in your region and I commend you for reaching out to the PSD community for advise. As you know, good equipment and good training are two components needed for a successful dive team. When three PSD fatalities take place in one city, it is time to review the training and make some positive changes.
My PADI OWSI number is 21263 so I have been around for a while. From my experience working as a senior manager at a dive shop (since 1979), teaching SCUBA for more than 20 years, and working as a career firefighter (coordinating an active Public Safety Dive team that at one time had more than 70 members) I can speak with experience.
Recreational diving is NOT Public Safety Diving and just because an individual holds the title of PADI Course Director, that does not instantly qualify him to teach Public Safety Divers. In the past ten years, 10 public safety divers have been killed in the "training mode" and five of these fatalities happened under the DIRECT supervision of recreational SCUBA instructors. You are in a prime position to make a huge impact in your region if you opt to follow a recommendation.
Use the PADI programs as FOUNDATION and build good SCUBA skills. Then top that training off with good PSD specific training using a recognized program from DRI, ERDI, IANTD, LGS or PSDA (in alphabetical order). I am biased towards one so I won't recommend one agency over another. If your Course Director can not attend an instructor cross-over with one of these agencies, consider contracting with one of the training agencies to teach through your store. A QUALIFIED instructor with CONSIDERABLE experience can show up at your shop, teach your students and leave. You continue to make equipment sales and the PSD teams in your region recognize your commitment to their safety because you have gone above and beyond what other stores have done.
If you plan to attend DEMA, the training agencies previously mentioned can guide you towards a partnership that will be good for you, good for your local PSD teams and most importantly, good for all citizens who live in your region.
Safe diving,
Blades Robinson