Sayville FD Undergoes Ice Rescue Training

The held an ice rescue course at their station followed by a hands-on demonstration at the beach on Jan. 23. In the wake of last week’s rescue of an 11-year-old Sayville girl who in the Great South Bay, it served as the perfect opportunity to give the firefighters a refresher course.

The first part of the training started with a classroom demonstration of the gear, the tools and the preparations involved in an ice rescue. Led by Firefighter Bob Smith and Captain Billy Roderka, participants learned about the suit used in rescue. Two participants were able to get into the Ice Commander suits as the firefighters explained. “First you need to take off your shoes and remove everything from your pockets,” Smith said. “The less water that gets into the suit, the better so keep it zipped up to your chin. If water gets into your mouth, you could aspirate.”

Psychologically reassuring the victim is the first and possibly most important step of the rescue. “Talk to the victim; if they are wearing gloves, tell them to put their hands out onto the ice and their gloves will freeze to the ice and they won’t slip underwater,” Roderka said. “With water rescues, the firefighters always try not to go in the water; however, with ice rescues, you most likely will be going into the water.”

The use of tools, such as ice picks for both the firefighter and the victim, can also aid in the rescue mission. “The pole is also a very important tool in the rescue,” Smith said. “It can be used to test out the ice in front of us; if it breaks, it will keep you from going underwater. It can also be given to the victim to hold onto.”

Lieutenant Dan Karl added, “Someone in the ice is panicking. Sometimes you can extend this pole to the victim and talk to them rather than getting in there with them. You can also throw them a rope or the ice picks to use if they still have the strength to pull themselves out.”

“Yell at the victim – tell them they can do it,” Smith said. “It will make them work harder and keep fighting, just like a regular water rescue.” Another important tool in the rescue is the ice sled and the firefighter needs to get in the water and get the victim on. After the victim is on, the firefighter also rides on the sled, almost on top of the victim, using their weight to create a positive buoyancy.

It is important to always have a safety in these rescues. It is typically one rescuer to one victim, but it can be a one-man operation if done properly, Roderka said. “We don’t want to put any more rescuers at risk than we have to,” he said. “If needed, we will deploy a second team, waiting on standby, to take a secondary path. Ideally, one crew is out on the ice and the secondary team is staged and ready to go.”

Hand signals are key when ice rescue is involved. The commander also plays an important role as there are often dozens of people involved in the rescue process. He keeps control of the situation, keeps everyone in their proper "zones" and makes sure all the resources needed are available. If it becomes a diving operation, the Sayville Department may need to call in other rescuers who have a dive team, a hover craft or even a helicopter.

Once the victim is safely removed from the ice, there are some vital steps to follow. First, all their wet clothing must be removed before they are covered in blankets. Don’t rub their extremities or use heat packs, as it will burn their skin.

“You can never trust the ice; no ice is safe ice,” Smith said. “There are a lot of different variables we face with the different waterways in Sayville, such as Brown’s River, Mill Pond and the Great South Bay. Get to know these different waterways.”

The class may have been a lengthy one, but it is a necessity. Michael Butler, first assistant chief of the Sayville Fire Department, said, “Every winter we go through all the equipment, how to go out onto the ice and show the firefighter how to do it properly. Ice rescues are very demanding, both physically and mentally, and there are a lot of factors involved. Ice rescues don’t happen too often; we fight fire all year round, so this training is a must.”

Next the firefighters braved the cold weather conditions and headed down to the Great South Bay to perform an actual ice rescue. With the victim safely tethered to a rope while in the water, the crew performed a successful ice rescue.