Hall County Fire Rescue recently expanded its Marine Rescue capabilities. For the past year, the department has used a Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) to search for drowning victims underwater.
ROV in action.
The ROV is similar to an underwater drone, yet large enough and maneuverable enough to locate underwater victims and use its mechanized “arm” to bring them back to the surface.
“Hall County Fire Marine Rescue Team is currently staffed with highly trained individuals to respond to any calls that occur on Lake Lanier,” said Kimberlie Ledsinger, public information office for Hall County Fire Rescue. “The majority of these calls are EMS related, or they involve fires, boat wrecks and drownings. Our team members are boat operators, medical professionals and ROV operators.”
Certain guidelines will determine when trained and certified divers are used on calls: when a call involves a victim who has been submerged for 30 minutes or less with a last known location in 30 feet of water or less.
“This is different moving forward because we will have the human element on drowning calls,” Ledsinger said. “The divers will dive under certain circumstances and will also be on standby if the ROV has any mechanical issues. The ROV will be used after the 30 minutes, in more than 30 feet of water, and if there is no known victim location. This is to prevent any unnecessary risk to our members.”
She said that both the ROV and divers will be available for drowning calls. Either and/or both tools could possibly be operational depending on the nature of the call.
“Hall County Fire Rescue is reaching out to certified and uncertified employees to gauge their interest in joining the Marine Rescue team,” she said. “The goal is to have approximately 10 certified divers on all three shifts. Once the team can function with enough divers, they will be operational on the water.”
Photo: provided by Hall County Fire Rescue
