On June 28 & 29 the HTVFD conducted a water rescue class. The instructors for the course were John Erich and Bob Reilly. The course covered various basic rescue skills including the use of a throw bag as well as self rescue techniques.  Most of day one was classroom time going over a variety of things such as medical considerations and the effects of cold water on the body. The group also used the pool at Penn-York camp to perform some practical exercises in self rescue, use of a throw bag, and rope use.

Day 2 had everyone off to Pine Creek in the PA Grand Canyon for a day of practical work. Several evolutions were run rescuing several “victims” from the water. This was followed by a brief test to complete the course.

And just to throw further interest into the day, on the way back to Station 20 Rescue 2028 and the crew from the class was first on scene of a one car roll-over MVA with serious injury. The patient was rapidly assessed, packaged and ready for transport upon arrival of ambulance 10-16. The patient was transported to the LZ in Wellsboro by ambulance 10-16 for transport via medivac to the trauma center. The crew also assisted Dept 10 personnel with traffic control for a short time.

More photos can be found in our Photo Gallery  

Photos by Mike and Nichole Healy 

Photos by Mike & Nichole Healy

On June 26th Dive 20 made its annual trek to Camp Cadet which is held at Mansfield University each year. The camp is run by the PA State Police for 6th and 7th graders from Tioga, Potter and Cameron Counties. The camp provides the cadets with a week of learning about a wide range of emergency services including various areas of law enforcement, fire service and EMS. Each year Dive 20 along with other area dive teams from the Morris Fire Dept and the West Branch Dive Team from Lycoming County provide the cadets with a water rescue course. A high emphasis is placed on preventing the occurrence of a potential drowning.  This year Chief Dave Jones had two recent incidents that were used as examples of situations that could have been prevented. The first being the tragic loss of a 10 year old boy on New Years Eve in Coudersport and the second the recent loss of a 20 year old man at Lyman Run State Park.

The cadets are provided with training on the proper use of several life saving devices such as a thrown bag, life ring, and PFD (Personal Floatation Device). They are also shown examples of other common items that can be used in an emergency to attempt to save someone in danger of drowning such as a one gallon milk container, a large piece of wood, or a soccer ball.

In addition to water rescue training the cadets are also provided with the opportunity to try out scuba diving. They are able to actually don a scuba tank and go under water with one of the divers and swim around the pool. At the end of the training they all get to spend some time in free swim. Each of the cadets also receives a certificate attesting to their completion of the class.

Photos of this year’s trip to Camp Cadet can be found in the Photo Gallery .