Awareness and Operations
Water Rescue Training
Program
The Goals of this class:
Identify what NFPA Standards and WACs
apply to water rescue.
Identify a water rescue and its hazards.
Identify the signs of hypothermia.
Identify the capabilities of awareness and
operations trained personnel.
Goals continued…
Identify the difference between Rescue and
Recovery.
Identify the resources that are available to
us during a water rescue.
Identify the components of scene control.
NFPA/WACs
What does the NFPA say?
NFPA 1006 Chapter 5 entitled “Water Rescue”
and NFPA 1670 Chapter 7 “Rope” and 9
entitled “Water” apply to us.
NFPA categorizes water rescue in four ways:
• Dive
• Ice
• Surf
• Swift Water
But what about near shore still water rescue?
What does the Law say?
WAC 296-305-05503 “ The employer shall provide
training and education for all members commensurate
with those duties and functions that members are
expected to perform.”
“Such training and education shall be provided to
members before they perform emergency activities.”
The Near Shore Water Rescue program with the
Awareness, Operations, and Technician Levels as
developed by Zone 1 are to comply with these
standards.
Hazards
What are the Hazards?
• "Considering all the risks, do my resources
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allow me to safely initiate a rescue at this
time?"
The decision to commit people to the rescue
means weighing all of the risk factors against
the possible benefit. Your personnel, training
and equipment are important factors to
consider in the size-up of risk potential.
Assess variables such as:
Weather Hazards
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Uncontrollable Hazards
Weather
High winds
Temperature extremes
Rain, snow and ice
Fog
Other Hazards
• Water
Temperature
Current
Poor access
Visibility
Other Hazards
• Pollution- chemicals, fuels and oils
Depth
Logs
Stumps
Branches
Muddy bottom
Other Hazards
• Submerged Objects
Cables and lines
Sharp metal and rebar
Automobiles, appliances, junk metal
Rocks and sandbars
Broken glass
Pilings and concrete
Other Hazards
• Bottom Conditions
Soft bottom
Holes and sharp drop-offs
Water/sewer outlets and intakes
Boat traffic- commercial and recreational
Animals/shellfish
Risk Benefit Analysis
Risk Benefit Analysis - Is the
decision making process that
weighs the hazards encountered by
the responder, versus the potential
benefit from that exposure.
Water Rescue Facts
Statistics:
1/2 of the earth’s population will enter the water
each year.
Drowning is the #2 cause of accidental deaths for
people under 44 years of age.
More Statistics:
Drowning is the #3 cause of death for all
ages.
13% of all drowning victims are 4 years of
age or younger.
Most drowning victims are found fully
clothed.
15% of water fatalities occur outside the
normal June - August recreation season.
Drowning
Two types of drowning:
Dry Drowning: Water covers a person’s breathing
passages, enters their throat, and causes an effect called
laryngospasm (blockage of the upper part of the throat
by muscular contraction). Very little water enters the
lungs.
Wet Drowning: When the larynx relaxes, water enters the
trachea and the lungs. The person dies from aquatic
asphyxiation which occurs 90% of the time.
How Do People Die in the Water?
1. Injuries / Illness before entering the
water (seizure, heart attack,
unconsciousness due to trauma or illness,
intoxication)
2. Injuries / Illness after having
entered the water (lacerations, seizure,
heart attack, drowning)
There are 2 Modes of Drowning:
1. Primary: Dying at the scene
2. Secondary: Dying within 72 hours of
near-drowning
What are the Signs of
Drowning?
1. Head back
2. Mouth wide open (no sounds)
3. Arms in and out of water (more in than
out of the water)
4. Head bobbing up and down in the water
Most common factors
contributing to Drowning:
• Inability to swim
• Cold water
• Alcohol and Drugs
The Dreaded Effects of Alcohol and
Drug Abuse – A public service
message!
Suddenly falling into cold water produces 3
primary effects:
1. Involuntary gasp (Mammalian Dive Reflex)
2. Cardiac arrest
3. Performance and stamina decrease
Our body temperature is normally 98.6*F.
“Hypothermic” is anything below 98.6*F.
Heat is lost 25 times faster in still water than in
still air.
This figure is 10 times greater in moving water
Hypothermia
2 TYPES OF
HYPOTHERMIA
1. Shell Hypothermia
skin pale color
difficulty holding objects
pain
loss of feeling
blood vessels shut down
2. Core Hypothermia
Most adults can last 15-20 min. before
their core temperature is affected.
Search Patterns
Triangulation
A method of pinpointing a position in a
large area by way of using two or
more intersecting lines of potential
location, or “lines of sight”. The point
at which the “lines of sight” or vectors
intersect is the theoretical location of
the subject of the search. Place your
datum point marker here.
Datum Point • Last known position of missing or
drowning person.
Datum Point Marker
Search Patterns
•Circular
•Linear
•Human Chain
Circular Pattern
• Circular or semi-circular coverage of area
of probability when datum point is known
Linear Pattern
• Straight line pattern for coverage of an
area of probability when datum point is
not known.
Human Chain
•A searching mode utilizing many people to
cover a large, shallow area in a short
amount of time up to chest deep water
with PFD on.
Water Rescue
Equipment
Personal Floatation Device
(PFD)
Personnel responding to confirmed water
rescue with no threat of fire or explosion
may remove their bunker gear to improve
mobility.
• 1) Firefighters working on, over or along water,
where danger of drowning exists, shall wear
approved personal flotation devices. (This is not
intended to include pools and hot tubs.)
PFD’s
Personal Flotation Device (P.F.D.) - any form or type of
Coast Guard approved flotation gear designed to be worn
by the user and to maintain some amount of buoyancy or
flotation in the water. There are five types rated by
function and design.
– Type I - will float someone 'face-up' without
effort
– Type II- will float someone 'face-up' with a
conscious effort'.
– Type III- has no 'face-up' flotation design
function. This is the most common type due to
comfort and wear ability. This is also the vest
issued to most crews.
– Type IV - ring and horseshoe throw buoys.
– Type V - oral and CO2 cartridge inflatable
devices and special work suits.
Rescue Adjuncts
• Tubes
• Buoys
• Search lines
Rescue Tube • Flotation tube used for rescue.
Ring Buoy
Ring Buoy / Horseshoe Buoy - A
bright orange, 4-7 lb. ‘ring’ or
‘horseshoe’ shaped urethane foam float
with a haul-back or grab line attached.
Designed to be thrown to a victim and
retrieved via the rope.
Line Signals
• Communications by rescue swimmer and
line tender on search line by means of pull
Line signals
1
2
3
4
Tender to Swimmer
tug = Are you OK?
tugs = Stop, change direction, take out line
tugs = Stop, look at the line tender
tugs = Help
Line Signals
1
2
3
4
Swimmer to Tender
tug = I’m OK
tugs = Need more line
tugs = Found object
tugs = Need help
Throw Rope
75' of polypropylene rope packed or 'stuffed' in a
nylon bag.
Rescue vs. Recovery
Rescue Mode
Rescue Mode - Operations undertaken by
responders to remove victims from
hazardous situations in which the victims
are able to offer little or no assistance due
to their physical condition or immediate
environment. Person has been under
water for <60 min.
Quick Rescue Mode – Victim can be seen
struggling in water or has just gone under
prior to F.D. arrival. Immediate action is
needed. Risk a lot to save a lot!
Recovery Mode
•Recovery Mode Operations
undertaken by responders to recover
victims, their remains, or property.
Operations should only be
implemented when the risk to
responders has been reduced to the
lowest possible level. Person has been
under water for >60min.
Quick Rescue Mode
• Complete size up, establish command, determine rescue
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or recovery and develop IAP
Interview witnesses and establish datum point upon
arrival unless victim is visible.
Try to reach victim with throw bags if he/she is visible
Have two rescuers set up for the rescue if it can be done
at the Operations Level. If not- Call for PCSORT, Sheriff,
etc.
Have two back up rescuers ready – Two-in/Two-out
This is the minimum number of personnel for a quick
rescue!
Incident Command and
the Water Rescue
Scenario where we are not in quick
rescue mode.
• We have not seen the victim
• Patient has a known “down time” of more
than a few minutes
• Think about a correlation with survivable
space in a fire
• Risk a little to save a little…
• We will not imperil ourselves unnecessarily
Command & Control
It is the IC responsibility to fill these positions if not assigned
• Assign Positions
– Rescue Group Leader
– Safety Officer
• Establish and maintain safe zones
– Hot, Warm, Cold zones
• Call for resources
Rescue Group Leader
is responsible for:
• Determining & Implementing action plan
• Overall rescue management
• Designation of team leader
• Questioning witnesses
• Triangulation/datum point
Back Up Team
• This is the “water version” of RIT
• Have all equipment needed for teams.
Entry Team Leader is
responsible for:
• Safety and management of the rescue
team
• Preparation and Coordination
• Communicate with other teams
• Oversee all PPE is used correctly and
properly equipped.
Support Team Leader
• Handles all accessory tasks
• Prepares boat/PWC
• Assist in triangulation
• Helps with crowd control
• ID’s hazards
• Lighting support
• Decontamination
Staging Officer
• Organizes and manages all equipment and
personnel in a resource area.
• Rehab
Safety Officer
• Responsible for overall scene safety
• Must ID all scene hazards.
• Ensures all personnel are wearing the
proper PPE and working within their
means and level of training.
Medical Group
Triage
Treatment
Transport
Qualifications and
Training
What can each Level do?
• Awareness - Can’t go in the water.
• Operations - Can go in the water with
Type lll PFD up to your waist.
Size Up/ Scene Control
How do we size up a water
incident?
• What have you seen and heard?
• What help do you need?
• What are the hazards?
• What can you do safely?
How do we control the scene?
• Establish ICS
• Call for resources
• Establish Zones
– Hot - Water and beach/dock
– Warm - Area between beach and emergency
apparatus or set up area
– Cold - beyond apparatus
Rescue Operational Zones
Hot Zone: The area of the rescue
operation where specified personnel
may be placed at risk. Only rescue
personnel directly involved in the
operations and equipped with the
proper safety equipment are
allowed in this area.
Rescue Operational Zones
Warm Zone: The area between the
hot zone and the cold zone that
contains personnel and equipment
essential to the support of the rescue
effort. This area may contain the
Command Post and Staging area.
Control of this area is essential for the
management of the rescue.
Rescue Operational Zones
Cold Zone: - A safe area at a rescue
incident, outside the warm and hot
zones. The area where apparatus,
personnel and equipment not actively
involved in the rescue are placed.
Base should be located here. The
media, bystanders and non-essential
personnel will also be in this zone.
Often asked Questions
1. Can FF go under water?
Operations Level - A firefighter can go
under water in waist deep water.
2. Can firefighters do a search in the water?
Operations level – A firefighter can do
wading assist, human chain and line searches
as long as the water is only waist deep and
you are wearing a Type III PFD.
Often asked Questions
3. What do we wear as a minimum for
Water Operations?
Operations Level: Type III PFD U.S.
Coast Guard approved.
Technician Level: Type III PFD U.S. Coast
Guard approved, plus a knife and whistle.*
Thanks for attending!!!
Be safe out there!!!