A Gentle Reminder. Gentle Like A Belly-Flop.

Last time I checked, you can not inhale water. Actually you can; but in doing so there have been reported many health risks. One of those risks is death. I'm not joking. People actually die from drowning! And you know what's even more amazing? Public Safety Divers still do it! Even understanding there is a risk of dying, they still try to inhale that H2O. Why?!

Apparently no one told them that it's no bueno. (Free Spanish lesson. You're welcome.) If someone had, then maybe they might have been more careful. They might have had a different outcome. But where can one learn this kind of wisdom? Where can you go to understand what not to do?

It's really not a question of where you can go, but who you can go to. The who you learn from is more important than where you learn. There are a lot of places you can go and learn advanced/specialty diving. Almost every sport diving agency has some kind of Search & Recovery certification. And if you are an advanced open water instructor with your agency, you're all good to teach it. But has that instructor ever actually done it? Have they been down and located what was missing and brought it back? I'm not talking about a weight belt that fell off the boat in the ocean; I'm talking about zero visibility water looking for a gun that's been pulled apart and tossed in piece by piece with every news station for 50 miles watching your every move. How would that instructor perform
then?

Sadly this is happening. Police and fire departments across the country are finding and hiring sport diving instructors to train their people in something the instructor has no experience in, or business teaching. They are learning in clear water and comfortable conditions. If it's raining they go home. Somehow this seems acceptable. Amazing.

Let me ask you a question. Why would you train anywhere other than where you would be performing the job? Pools are really nice; in fact I was in a pool last night. But I was teaching open water newbies, NOT people that need to be bringing their A-game at the worst times in the worst conditions! We need to get away from this mentality of trusting an instructor because they have a card that says they can teach a class. Take the time to interview someone who is going to train your department. Ask them what their experience is. I don't care how many people you have taught, I want to know how long you have been doing recoveries and what kind of cases you have worked on. Tell me stories and some of your mistakes you have made.
Tell me why you teach what you teach! Are you doing this because it's a good gig and the money is good, or are you doing this because you want to bring the very best training to those that serve our community's? It is OK to ask these questions! If someone is going to get all defensive because you are challenging there credibility, then something is wrong.

So to sum this whole thing up in two words...be annoying. Ask questions, do your research, and don't condemn you and your team to failing before the class even starts. Write down what you want to accomplish, and every question you can think of before you interview a potential instructor. Then get at it!

Search negatively my friends!

It started with a Z. (Guest Writer Edition)

 If you have ever wondered where and when police diving began, you are in luck. Because I know the who, what, where, when, why and how. WOW! That sounds like an investigative technique. But before you can arrive at the correct answer you must first have a proper question. You must define police diving and establish the criterion for that definition.

There are many individuals and agencies that could lay claim to police diving beginnings but there is only one individual and agency in which the claim is valid. Before we go there however a brief history overview is necessary.

·         Hard hat (Helmeted) surface supply diving began in the 19^th century

·         SCUBA diving began in 1943 when J. Cousteau and E.Gagnan developed the regulator

·          Z served in the US Navy from 1948-1957 as a salvage diver/surface swimmer SCUBA diver

·         “The Silent World” by J. Cousteau published in 1953

·         Swimming pool owners associations offer skin diving training 1957

·         Sea Hunt aired on television in 1957

·         Z joined the Dade County Sheriff’s Office in 1958 and was assigned to the rescue squad

·         Z begins training other rescue squad members and establishes a police diver standard

·         Connecticut State Police Send volunteers to US Navy dive school in Groton Conn. 1959

·         YMCA begins skin diving instruction in 1960 with PADI and NAUI close in the running

·         Michigan State Police begin training for police divers in 1961

·         Z conducts graduation ceremony for first police divers in March 1961 (Police Diving Curriculum)

·         NYPD begins using police divers instead of commercial divers in 1967

·         Dive Rescue International coined the phrase Public Safety Diver in the 1970’s

Z who is Edwin Blaze Zehnder left the US Navy and joined the Dade County Sheriff’s Office in 1957, and because of his SCUBA diving knowledge, skills and abilities (attitude), when he graduated from the police academy in 1958 was assigned to the Rescue Squad. Z began the proper training of the other members of the rescue squad and it was soon apparent that his knowledge skills and abilities (attitude) aided in advancing the capabilities of the whole squad.

In 1959 Z and another deputy recovered a drowning victim and administered mouth to mouth resuscitation. Several days later both he and his partner were diagnosed with spinal meningitis. The other Deputy died, while Z was left more or less deaf with only 10% hearing in one ear. While recovering in the hospital Z was approached by his Bureau commander and asked to create a training standard and manual for underwater search & recovery. 

Writing a manual was a daunting task for Z, who had to leave school after 8^th grade to help in his family’s business. He later earned his GED in the US Navy.

Z took the challenge and was able to produce a first rate Police Diver training manual with hand drawn illustrations and a standard of training. Something to consider is the fact that there was no PADI, NAUI, YMCA or any recognized Diver training agencies at this point. He had to draw from his US Navy training and skills he developed as a police diver.

In March 1961 the Dade County Public Safety Department (formally Sheriff’s Office) graduated six police divers who were trained totally in house utilizing a Police diving curriculum and standards. One of those Police Divers was Joseph N Johnson, who remained on the Underwater Search & Recovery Squad as a full time Police Diver until he retired in 1992.

Z continued to serve as officer in charge and lead diver until he retired in 1989 when he passed the mantle to the National Academy of Police Diving. His dream was that one day all police divers would be trained to a common standard and methodology in underwater search and recovery. The NAPD which began in 1988 with Z as a founding member continues to share his vision.

Remember, it began with a Z.

Edwin Blaze Zehnder (Police Diver 1958-1989),

The Father of Police Diving

Today's post was written by Michael Gast.

Michael retired as an active police diver from the Miami-Dade County Police Dive Team in 2007. He has extensive experience, with over 25 years as a full-time police diver. He has personally been involved in more than 5,000 underwater recovery and investigation operations. Michael is the founder and president of the National Academy of Police Diving.

Can you find my needle? It's in that haystack.

I hate that expression. It's like finding a needle in a haystack.
You might as well say "Hey! There is no way you can do this. You will fail if you try and you are a loser!"
Well I'm not a loser. Unless it's basketball. I'm about as good at basketball as a blind man is at charades.

It's said that the idiom goes back to the 1600's. Obviously they did not have proper training in search and recovery methods back then or else the saying would have never caught on.

When people lose something in a big body of water, they are surprised when I'm willing to take up the challenge. It always makes me laugh when they are surprised, because I think to myself why did they ask me if they thought it was impossible.

Several months ago I had a friend come up to me with one such challenge. He lives on a lake and was on a jet ski when he turned to sharply and fell off the jet ski. In what I'm sure was, a gloriously graceful dismount; my friends watch fell off. A very nice Invicta his family had gotten him one year for Christmas.

He was pretty bummed about losing it because of the sentimental value. 

The lake is 1 square mile and 50 feet deep. He thought it was gone and would forever haunt the fish on the bottom of that lake.
While he was telling me about all the events leading up to the heart wrenching separation, you could almost hear the doubt intensify in his voice. "No problem" I told him. "I'll come by later this week and find that thing."

When I got there I asked the same questions I always ask. I was able to narrow this haystack down to a hay bail! Once I got in the water, the bottom composition informed me that the "needle" might as well have been painted bright pink.
After an hour of searching I located the watch and recovered it to the disbelief of my friend.

Don't be so quick to see large body's of water as haystacks. Learn to ask the right questions that will minimize the area you have to search. Work from a known to an unknown. 

Search negatively my friends!