Info on starting Public Safety Dive Team

[aquaknott]

Hello everyone,

I am wanting some info from the PSD community. I am currently in a Vol Fire Department where I do Fire/Fire Rescue calls, Medical calls and in the fall I will also be on the Hazmat team. I love the work and would not trade it for anything. My question though is how can convince my department that Public Safety Diving Training can beneficial. Our guys are really greast guys but they are not comfortable around water so they figure any water emergencies can be handled by some one else. By some one else I mean like a paid city department or military dive team. I would very much like to become a PSD diver and include that to my long list of on call contingencies. I just like helping people in any circumstance and I want to be ready for what ever may arise. I was a river rafting guide on the ocoee river and took up river rescue and when I spent time in the mountains of NC I took up mountain resue, So I would judt like to find a convincing way to encourage my department that it is a good idea. I feel we could better server not only our local community but our neighboring communitie if we had our own dive team. Please help. Thanks in advance.

 

[Gary D.]

First off if the rest of your department doesn’t feel comfortable around the water don’t try and form a team out of them. Peer pressure is one of the biggest killers in this job.

You are stacking a lot onto the plate. IMHO you are spreading yourself way to thin if you are still doing all the stuff you mentioned. To be proficient at anything there can’t be a whole lot of other things out there. Especially with diving you need to be focused and dedicated.

As far as Haz-Mat I know what our folks go through to stay proficient and current in their certifications. It doesn’t leave a lot of room for other things like in your case, a job and PSD.

You can better serve your community by taking one field and becoming as proficient as you can. There is an old saying; “A jack of all trades, a master of none”. Don’t fall into that statement.

Good luck

Gary D.

 

[snow drift]

well I wish you luck with that one! I have been going thru the same thing! tryed to do a lot of deferent things so far the best thing that I have found are some links that Gary posted to scare the hell out of them to get the proper training. verdict is still out on that one. But I'm about to just scrap the hole thing and watch to see if thay die. Sorry back to your ? Gary gave me the best advice resurch it all out $ to spend the pros to having a dive team and take it all to the grand poba

 

[snow drift]

And there he is beat me to the post

 

[bridgediver]

The best advice I can give new people/teams is to phone LGS up and get them to send you their "So you want to start a dive team" booklet. Lots of info from feasibility, budgets, training, dealing with management, gear and if you really will be able to make it work or not.

http://www.teamlgs.com/default.htm

 

[aquaknott]

Thinks for all the good advice. The guys in my department are uncomfortable aroung water but there is at least one other guy in the department that dives and I have some close friends that dive that I good encourage to join. I would never try to get the non divers involoved in a dive team. LOL My thought was that if I could bring my love of diving to my love of Fire/Rescue then I could bring them both together and end up in a good position to improve both. We have a local search and rescue team but they do not have a good name from I have heard. The 2nd in command has seriously advised against joinging their team. So I figured why not start a new team that will have qualified and well trained divers. Either way I will keep trying and if anyone can help along the way it would be greatly appreciated.

 

[hunter991]

I would also contact dive rescue international. They do lots of good training for teams and maybe can offer some good advice on forming a team.

Brent

 

[Gary D.]

I would never try to get the non divers involoved in a dive team.QUOTE]
Why not?

With the proper training it is much easier to start from scratch than change old habits. Over all we have had much better results from scratch than seasoned divers.

Gary D.

 

[Diesel298]

this is something i have been intrested in for quite some time. i think ill go down to the local fire dept and talk to the guys on shif see where that leads, ill share my info with you all then.

 

[leam]

Lots of good advice. Does this need to be a "sticky" thread? To include links to DRI/ERDI/LGS, etc?

ciao!

leam