This page shall serve as the official Standard Operating Procedures for Water Rescue and Certification:

Last Updated:  05/09/2023
By:   Kidd B.

Incidents on the water are more hazardous than the same incident on land. Other than boarding another vessel to affect a rescue or extinguishment a fire and, when operationally necessary, swimming to retrieve a victim, leaving the boat is NOT an option. With the limited resources of SAFD, an operator of SeaHawk should be considered on the initial dispatch to provide for safety, evacuation and a “birds eye view”.  The potential for rescuer(s) to become victims and further escalate the situation and need for additional resources is extremely high. When entering the water, it is expected all boat personnel be wearing diving equipment.

Minimum SAFD Expectations:

• all boats should be equipped with an anchor

• all responding personnel should be equipped with diving gear

• all responding personnel will have the following training:

  • Swimming & Diving Qualification

  • Boat Orientation & Operation Qualification

Definitions:

• Boat Operator: Person responsible for the operation of the boat/vessel. They are responsible for the safety of all personnel on the boat. They are responsible for positioning the vessel for retrieval and or recovery of victims.  

• Boat Crewmember: Person or persons operating as the boat crew will assist the boat operator in the operation, docking, trailering, mooring, anchoring and other aspects of handling the rescue vessel both in and out of the water. They will also function as the rescue swimmers/divers.

Responding to call:

• Determine the approximate location of the incident

  • In-land rescue / off-shore rescue?

• Divide appropriately qualified personnel 

  • Helicopter crew

  • Boat / Swim & Dive Crew

  • Land Crew

• Determine call type

  • Boat/Vessel Fire

  • Boat/Vessel Mayday (inoperable, unable to reach land, sinking)

  • Medical Emergency

  • Search and Rescue / Drowning

• Determine scope of the incident

Primary Assessment:

• Determine the nature of the incident

• Determine the location (GPS, navigational markers, landmarks on shore, nearby boats)

• Description of vessel/individual in distress 

• Is the vessel capable of operating under its own power?

• Is the vessel anchored to prevent drift?   

• If not, request boat crew to obtain additional anchor to provide to vessel

• Have the person calling be on the lookout for emergency response personnel 

Establish:

• Command

• Water Rescue Group

• Helicopter Group 

• Land Group to include:

  • Staging Location for ground crews 

  • EMS Group (EMS Group Supervisor)

  • Police Liaison

  • Public Information Officer (PIO)

Rescue Operations:

• Appropriate PPE, ensure all members have diving gear

• Ensure all responding watercraft have anchors and a spare to provide distressed vessel

• Advise land-based units of appropriate location to stage for patient transfer

• Establish scene control

Missing Persons:

• Determine last known location

• Request overhead helicopter

• Conduct a search in accordance with USCG search patterns

• Assign areas to be searched. Keep logs of areas searched

• Periodically shut off engines and listen for calls for help

• Have nearby shorelines searched in the event victim made it to land

• Establish contact with victim family members in the event the victim makes contact with them

• Establish an EMS staging area for victim handoff

Vessels on Fire:

• Identify vessels involved

• Identify hazards

• Establish scene control

• Remove victims to safety

• Commence fire attack

• Attempt to mitigate runoff, fuel and oils from entering water by use of booms as soon as possible

Potential Equipment:

• Radios

• Boats

• Anchors

• PFD

• Dive Gear

• Throw Bags

• Flares

• Basic Medical Equipment

Water Rescue Technician Selection:

• Rank:  Specialist +

• Approval from Command Staff

• Approval from Water Rescue Lead

• Trainee is responsible for coordinating training time through the Lead

• Lead is responsible for tracking overall progress and training hours per the SOP

• Once training program minimums have been met, Lead will present candidate to Fire Chief for approval

• Candidate shall operate in this capacity until Discord role is granted by the Chief

• Command reserves the right to approve or deny any certification process and it can be removed at any time at their discretion

Water Rescue Turnover Process:

Phase 1:

[SESSION #] [SESSION TYPE]   [TIME] [TOPIC/TASK/OBJECTIVES]

• SESSION 1 REVIEW/CLASSROOM 45 min SOP Review

• SESSION 2 REVIEW/CLASSROOM 30 min Basic Equipment

• SESSION 3 REVIEW/CLASSROOM 30 min Water Rescue Truck & Boats(locations)

• SESSION 4 PRACTICAL SESSION 1 hour Swimming & Diving

Phase 2:

[SESSION #] [SESSION TYPE]   [TIME] [TOPIC/TASK/OBJECTIVES]

• SESSION 1 PRACTICAL SESSION 1 hour Boat Operation Basics

• SESSION 2 PRACTICAL SESSION 1 hour Marie Navigation

• SESSION 3 PRACTICAL SESSION 2 hour Boat Crewmember Operations

• SESSION 4 PRACTICAL SESSION 2 hour Diving Operations

• SESSION 5 PRACTICAL SESSION 1 hour Search Patterns

• SESSION 6 PRACTICAL SESSION 1 hour Communications

Phase 3:

[SESSION #] [SESSION TYPE]   [TIME] [TOPIC/TASK/OBJECTIVES]

• SESSION 1 SCENARIO UKN Missing Fisherman 

• SESSION 2 SCENARIO UKN Missing Kayaker (swift water)

• SESSION 3 SCENARIO UKN Missing Boater 

• SESSION 4 SCENARIO UKN Boat Fire 

• 10+ hrs of Boat Operation &/Or Diving 

**Certified Water Rescue Technicians will have the 'WaterRescue' discord role**