Highway Patrol leads water rescues in Missouri
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
With the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse in Baltimore on Tuesday, divers resumed recovery efforts Wednesday after several vehicles and members of a construction crew fell into the water.
If a bridge collapse were to happen in Missouri, the Missouri State Highway Patrol would likely be part of the search for survivors. ABC 17 News spoke with Lt. Eric Brown from the MSHP Public Information and Education Division about how they would be prepared.
"The Missouri State Highway Patrol trains and plans and prepares for incidents as such what has happened in Baltimore," said Brown. "Throughout every year we train with our state, local and federal partners to prepare for catastrophic events such as that."
In a response to a catastrophic event, Brown says that it would be a multi-jurisdictional event. Patrol members, members in the affected jurisdictions and surrounding areas will send full response to help in rescue and recovery.
The MSHP Water Patrol Division has the equipment and proper boats to aid in any type of water emergency. Brown told ABC 17 News that they are trained in swift water rescues and recoveries whether its in lakes, rivers, or ponds.
"We have dive team members who can make underwater recoveries, sonar equipment on our boats that are very high tech and can detect the things in the water, such as a person, if need be, and help them pinpoint a location underneath the boat and with size gain capabilities as well," said Brown.
The patrol's Dive Team conducts around 36 dive operations every year to recover drowning and boat crash victims or to recover criminal evidence in felony cases.
To be a member of the Dive Team, troopers must be at least a Trooper First Class and complete a five-week New Diver Course. Divers must also take an annual water skills and fitness test.
Annual training courses for divers include panic proofing, "blacked out" entrapment scenarios, out-of-air scenarios, gas blending, underwater navigation, search pattern validations, lift operations, ice diving, heavy current diving in zero visibility and administering the peer support program.
When ever a Dive Team enters the water for a search and rescue or recovery, it is a dangerous situation. Brown says that the water could be moving quickly and the majority of Missouri waterways have zero visibility underwater, divers also need to be aware or debris.
Brown said, "with the other debris in the water, whether that be natural debris or something like a bridge structure that has fallen in all dangers that they have to be planning for and be prepared for and how to respond when they encounter it."
