LAFD Boat 4, Boat 3 and Engine 49 responded to a well involved 35' cabin cruiser. The fire completely gutted the interior of the vessel.
Saturday, December 29, 2012
Body Recovery MacArthur Park
On December 11, 2012, Boat 3, Engine 49 and Battalion 6 were dispatched to 2032 Wilshire Blvd for a reported “Drowning” in MacArthur Park Lake at 0706 hours. The initial dispatch, at 0641 hours, included Task Force 11, Rescue 13 and Battalion 11.
After it was determined that the incident was strictly a search and recovery operation, in coordination with LAPD, the Mesotech Sonar was assembled and prepared for deployment near the last known location of the victim. The Mesotech Sonar was deployed via boat and relocated three separate times to identify targets and narrow the search area. The sonar search revealed underwater hazards, plumbing and support structures. Divers encountered zero visibility due to the heavy silt at the bottom of the lake. The dive team cleared the first two targets and located the victim at the third target location. The victim was found in 11 feet of water, 12 minutes after the search was initiated, total dive time was 19 minutes.
The dive team reported that the victim had been located and they initiated the “marking” procedure, with consideration to scene preservation for investigative purposes.
LAPD Detectives and the Coroner’s Office responded to the incident and dictated procedural operations following the locating of the victim. LAPD Divers secured the victim in a body bag for removal from the water. A medical report was completed by RA 13 and the Coroner initiated the appropriate protocol.
Sinking Vessel
Fire department marine resources responded to a reported sinking vessel. Upon arriving on scene,
LAFD Boat 1 found that a 40' Department of Fish and Game vessel "Garibaldi" had been struck mid-ship by a large container barge (in photo background). The vessel sustained substantial damage and was taking on water. LA County Lifeguards and US Coast Guard assisted LAFD Boat 1 in successfully mitigating the incident.
Sunday, December 23, 2012
Cruise disaster: new rescue diver video shows inside Costa Concordia
Video from within the capsized Costa Concordia cruise ship shows a disarray of furniture and abandoned belongings.
New footage from inside the stricken cruise ship has been released, as calmer seas enabled Italian divers to resume their search and rescue operations on the Costa Concordia.
The video, filmed on a diver's helmet camera, shows a dark and chaotic interior of the capsized ship.
The diver's torchlight eerily illuminates sofas, chairs and lighting fixtures within a hallway of the vessel.
Abandoned belongings can also be seen floating in the water.
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
Dive Team in Action
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| Container Training |
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| Container Training |
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| Container Training |
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| Boat 2 bringing in the USS Iowa |
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| Iowa and Boat 4 in the background |
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| USS Iowa |
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| Crew of Boat 4 |
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| Sidemount Shawn Mason, Boat 1 |
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| Mate Bender, FF Teter and Corby |
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| Boat 4 and 3 |
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| Boat 2 and 4 |
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| Shipboard Firefighting Drill |
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| Inner harbor training |
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| PDOG for the IOWA |
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| Mates Bender and Stephenson |
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| LAPD |
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| LAPP PDOG |
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| PDOG Wharf Sweeps |
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| PDOG Wharf Sweeps |
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| Boat 3 |
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| LA Sheriff Dave Carver teaching gas management at MLETC |
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| New Drysuits |
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Firefighter Suffers Brain Injury During Dive Training Exercise
CONWAY — Firefighter Danny Collins, 38, is home in Conway after being hospitalized in Shreveport, La., for a brain injury that occurred Sept. 22 during dive training in Hot Springs.
Conway Fire Chief Bart Castleberry said Collins suffered a brain embolism “and other things.”
“It was really touch and go for the first two days,” Castleberry said.
He said Collins and firefighters Jonathan Talley and Ty Ledbetter were taking part in a dive class at Lake Ouachita in about 20 feet of water and were doing “a grid search — they search in a pattern, a grid.”
Talley was on the bank, attached to Ledbetter, who was attached to Collins.
“Ledbetter noticed he was getting pulled on, so he went back and checked, and Danny was tangled up,” Castleberry said. “He helped [Collins] untangle, and they went to the surface. Danny immediately started having trouble, physically.”
Castleberry said Collins was first taken to a Hot Springs hospital.
He said the doctor on duty had been a physician in Florida and “had seen these types of injuries before.”
The doctor said Collins needed a hyperbaric chamber for brain injuries, and Collins was taken to Shreveport.
“He had to fly at a certain altitude, couldn’t fly high,” Castleberry said.
Castleberry said he and other firefighters visited Collins in the hospital. He said Brian Moix, division chief and training officer, stayed in Shreveport the entire time.
The chief said Collins could talk “in short periods.”
Castleberry said he couldn’t elaborate on Collins’ condition, but he said he doesn’t expect Collins to return to the Fire Department “for a while.”
Capt. Rick Powell, who was also with Collins in Shreveport, said, “He’s in good spirits. We’re looking forward to getting him back down here.”
Powell worked with Collins at Wilson Drews Central Fire Station in downtown Conway.
Collins is a driver, a bomb technician and a special-operations team member.
“He’s a good man; he’s seasoned,” Castleberry said. “He’s all-out fire department.”
Castleberry said because it was an on-the-job injury, the city will help with Collins’ expenses, as will a firefighters benevolent fund.
The Conway Fire Department’s special rescue team trains “all the time,” Castleberry Conway Firefighter Suffers Brain Injury During Training Exercise
By: KARK 4 News
A CONWAY FIREFIGHTER IS IN THE INTENSIVE CARE UNIT AT A SHREVEPORT HOSPITAL TONIGHT SUFFERING FROM A BRAIN INJRY AFTER AN UNDERWATER TRAINING EXERCISE.
Ten-year veteran Captain Danny Collins was working in 20 feet of water in Hot Springs yesterday when he became tangled in some rope. He signalled to his partner, but when they surfaced, Collins struggled to breath.
He was air lifted to Shreveport where they have a hyperbaric chamber and specialize in these types of brain injuries.
He was air lifted to Shreveport where they have a hyperbaric chamber and specialize in these types of brain injuries.
His wife and mom were at his side Sunday night. One of his best friends, a fellow firefighter, was on his way to the hopsital as of Sunday night as well. KARK will keep you updated on his recovery.
Ark. Firefighter Suffers Embolism During Dive Training
FIREHOUSE.COM NEWS
CREATED: SEPTEMBER 24, 2012
CREATED: SEPTEMBER 24, 2012
A CONWAY FIREFIGHTER SUFFERED AN EMBOLISM WHILE PARTICIPATING IN A DIVING CLASS IN HOT SPRINGS, ARK. ON SATURDAY.
FIREFIGHTER DANNY COLLINS WAS PERFORMING A SEARCH GRID TASK IN ABOUT 20 FEET OF WATER WHEN THE INCIDENT OCCURRED, ACCORDING TO THE LOG CABIN DEMOCRAT.
He was flown to a hospital in Shreveport, La. for treatment.
Firefighter Ty Ledbetter found that Collins had become tangled in his line and as the two men were attempting to fix the line, Collins began having problems breathing.
Fire Chief Bart Castleberry told the newspaper that he expects Collins to be in the ICU for about a week and spend time in a hyperbaric chamber for his injuries.
"It was a blessing that the doctor in Hot Springs had seen this kind of injury before and knew what to do," he said.
Collins was able to see his wife before being airlifted to the hospital and his family and a liaison from the fire department have joined him in Shreveport.
Firehouse.com will provide more information on this story as it becomes available.
LA Port Police Recover Movie Directors Body
Recovering Tony Scott's body all in a day's work for port's diving team
No one knew anything about the man quickly scaling the 10-foot fence that lines the edge of the Vincent Thomas Bridge, other than the fact he was intent on jumping Sunday afternoon.
Before officers could arrive to coax him down, emergency operators heard several 911 callers gasp in horror as British director Tony Scott - an avid mountain climber - leapt from the span's apex around 12:30 p.m. and plunged 185 feet into the murky water below.
Scott, the director of such blockbusters as "Top Gun," "Crimson Tide" and "Unstoppable," was already floating facedown by the time a motorcycle officer reached the bridge.
"It all went down very fast," said Lt. Michael Capodanno, who heads the Port of Los Angeles Police Department's maritime operations, which includes the dive team.
Officers with port police, the Los Angeles Police Department and California Highway Patrol joined city firefighters and the U.S. Coast Guard in searching for Scott, still unaware that the man who just jumped to his death had also directed some of Hollywood's most successful films.
The crew of a port police patrol boat arrived moments later and unsuccessfully tried to retrieve Scott as he sank into the port's Main Channel.
They quickly used GPS equipment to lock the coordinates of where the body was last seen as Los Angeles
Fire Department's dive team launched a rescue attempt. Scott wasn't found an hour later, moving the port police dive team into recovery mode.
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LAFD Members Receive Technical Dive Training
10 members of the LAFD Dive Team turned to Unified Team Diving (UTD), headquartered in Carlsbad California, for technical dive training. Members received training in technical dive essentials, twin tanks, side-mount diving, and instructor development. "This was a great opportunity to learn advanced skills and protocols" says dive team member Steve Meiche. "The philosophy, critical skills, team concepts and situational awarness parallels with public safety diving. "We as emergency response divers have much to learn from UTD's equipment configuration and protocols," Meiche continues.
"I think taking these classes has made us all better divers" states back-up diver Jason Teter.
About Unified Team Diving:
This is the first in a series of educational video's that will help public safety divers understand how they can benefit from Unified Team Diving training.
For more information about Unified Team Diving visit them at:
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| Jeff Seckendorff from UTD instructs Steve Meiche on long hose configuration |
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| Twin back mount |
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| Hani Jejjoni is fitted for a side-mount harness configuration by UTD instructor Dave Bentley |
LAFD Pulls Driver From Submerged Vehicle
LOS ANGELES (CBS) — A man who was pulled from a vehicle that plunged into the Los Angeles Harbor Saturday has died.
The crash was reported at 2:55 p.m. at the north side of Pier 300 near Navy Way at the Port of Los Angeles, said Brian Humphrey of the Los Angeles Fire Department.
Louisa Hodge, reporting for CBS2 and KCAL9, said the victim — who had been hospitalized in grave condition — died.
Hodge spoke to authorities who identified the man as a 25-year-old college student.
Witnesses told rescuers the car left a public roadway and plunged into about seven feet of murky water, landing upside down, Humphrey said.
Divers had to break into the vehicle underwater, “which is no easy task,” Humphrey said. He added the water was so murky rescuers had to use flashlights.
Officials believe there were no other occupants in the vehicle, Humphrey said.
The cause of the crash was under investigation.
Firefighter of the Year
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Cruise Ships Collide in Bermuda [VIDEO]
Public safety Diver offers perspective on Italy cruise ship rescue efforts
Fire Chief Steve Orusa is keeping a close eye on the rescue operations off the coast of Italy, where a cruise ship ran aground..
Besides heading up the fire department, Orusa is the director of the International Association of Dive Rescue Specialists Response Team. He spoke with 24-Hour News 8's Jay Hermacinski about the dive operation off the coast of Italy.
"Because the ship is unstable, it is very dangerous,” he said, “there's entrapment hazards and debris that can move. Nothing is stable."
The diving veteran said dive teams face what are called penetration dives, meaning they have to get inside the underwater sections of the cruise ship.
Orusa said that in itself creates a dangerous situation for the dive team.
Orusa said that in itself creates a dangerous situation for the dive team.
"They can't get direct access to the surface,” he said. “So now, if something goes wrong, you can't just go to the surface to get a breath of air. You have to follow you line all the way out. So whatever problem you have in that aquatic environment, you have to solve it yourself because you don't have time to get a safety diver to you."
Monday, divers suspended rescue efforts because the vessel began to move.
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