Firefighters Train for Icy Water Rescues

CAPE MAY- Imagine falling through the ice on a pond and finding yourself struggling to move in water so cold it takes your breath away.
The Cape May Fire Department held an open water ice rescue exercise Jan. 24 on a pond off Madison Avenue in case they are called upon to save an ice skater, hockey player or someone perhaps chasing a dog onto a frozen pond or lake.
According to Lt. Alex Coulter, personnel donned cold water/ice rescue dry suits and utilized the fire department’s two ice rescue sleds to simulate rescues using live victims. He said the personnel were tethered to shore with a safety line. Coulter said a haul line was attached to the sleds and a line was used for shuttling the sleds back and forth if needed for multiple victims.
The frigid weather made the ice ideal for training. Personnel rotated allowing all firefighters to make contact rescues during the training evolution, he said.
The rescue exercise uses a hole in the ice with enough ice on the pond to let fire personnel make an indirect approach to the victim.
The victim is loaded onto a rescue board. Firefighters use hand signals to communicate messages such as “more line” or “stop” to those on shore. When the victim is secured, personnel on shore bring the rescuer to dry land, said Coulter.
The support group on shore, within 10 feet of the pond, must wear life jackets.
“We leave one rescuer on land fully geared up and ready to go to back up the rescuer that’s going out in case something happens,” he said.
Coulter said the first step in an ice rescue is “reach, throw, go,” getting a rope to the victim to determine if they can grab the line and rescue themselves.
In the training drill, the victim was far from shore, so firefighters used two, 500 foot rope bags with water rescue rope that floats, he said. Coulter said they also used two, 150- foot rope bags.
Fire personnel use ice picks on the sleds to pull themselves across the ice.
Who gets the job of playing the victim in the frigid water?
“We try to do it by seniority,” he said. “Everybody gets to rotate through being the victim.”
To help newer fire personnel who have less ice rescue training, an experienced officer like Coulter will play the victim which allows them to instruct the firefighter on how to load the victim.
“We have a rescue sling that we place on the victim and we pull it tight and that keeps them buoyant,” said Coulter.
He said the most important part of the rescue is to get the sling onto the victim. The sling is secured to a rescue board.
Cape May Fire Department responds to a pond or lake rescue with a rescue truck with a firefighter suited up to enter icy water upon arrival.
“We’re on scene anywhere within city limits in two to three minutes,” said Coulter. “If we have to travel to Lake Lily, we’re looking at about five minutes.”
A second firefighter will immediately suit up to back up the first rescuer, he said.
The last time the fire department undertook an ice rescue was to save a dog on Lake Lily. Coulter said the department has not had recent rescues that involved pulling a victim out of a pond.
The drill was held after sunset which made the exercise more challenging.