Post Sandy Beach Clean-up...

 

On Sunday the dive team answered a request for our services. A call was made for the team to search the beachs  for storm debris before the start of the swimming season. We were asked to search the shallow waters along the shore for large debris and to remove it.

A plan was made and the call went out for divers, it was a good turnout. We had ten divers and six first aiders show up ready to go to work. We had three trucks on the beach to carry all the dive gear and diver up and down the beach. This made it a lot easier on the divers and saved us a ton of walking.

 The weather was on our side, with sunny skies and waves no bigger than three feet and warm temperatures, not to hot and not to cold!

 

 

 

We put our rescue boat ( rescue 34 ) in the water to ward off wayward boaters and to give surface support to the divers if needed. Tom C. was our coxswain for the day and did a great job. Once rescue 34 got on location we started our search at the foot of broadway.

 

 The plan was for the two divers to go out to between eight and fourteen feet and search swimming south. The search was done on the high tide so even at low tide the area search would be the area used by swimmers. The first team was Joe S. and Tom T. With the water temperatures at 44 and a pretty good surge running also a current running to the north at just under a knot each team was going to be in the water only a little over a half hour.

Tom and Joe got the ball rolling covering over two city blocks, at the end of the dive tom T. got in the boat with tom C. to be on hand if tom C. needed the help. They did run into some small debris pockets, but nothing that would be a risk to swimmers. It was also moving with the current.

 

As teams were getting in and out of the water and gearing up it was the training that both the first aiders and divers had that made it look easy. Everyone helping each other, as divers came out of the water they were helped up the beach to the back of jerry truck and sat down and their gear was removed and the next team was briefed by the first team and geared up and helped into the water.

 

The second team was Sue L. and Ali B. and they showed up the guys today. They covered right up to jenks main building. The first pair of divers were hard to spot from the beach so Sue and Ali were send in with a surface float which made it easier for the shore people to see them. When they came out they reported no debris at all.

 

Joe S. and Bob S. were the next team in and they covered the area from jenk’s main building to pass martell’s. They also find no debris at all.

The last team in was a solo dive done by Chet N. and he covered the last of the search area up to the foot of Trenton ave. He also report no debris.

 

Many people came up to us to find out what we were doing and every one took the time to tell them what and why we were doing the search. It was a long day for everyone. To be in a dry suit for 7 hours is not a good thing. The smell of all the food cooking on the boardwalk had our mouths watering, but food had to wait . We had gear and trucks to clean!

Fishermen's Flea Mkt ~2013~

Sunday was our big fund raiser for the year. The ocean #1 fire company’s fishing flea market. We recover sinkers all year and sell them back to the fishermen and anything else we find, ie fishing pole, lures, tools, anchors or old bottles. Some people will buy any thing. One  year we sold a three foot high concrete owl that sue and tom recovered.

  This year we had over 2056lbs of sinkers and over one hundred lures to sell and fishing poles and anchors. It took over eight hours to clean the sinkers and lures to get them ready to sell. Saturday night we finished up the sorting and cleaning and loaded up the dive truck for Sunday.

Sunday morning saw a pretty good turnout of members to get set up and sell! Sell we did!! It didn’t look to us like a good turnout, most times you can’t walk around due to so many people. But not this year, you could walk around without any problems. Sales were slow for a little while but picked up after about an hour. The good lures were the first to go. Afew old bottles got sold and the anchors were gone, tom was pushing the fishing poles and sue and flo had the sinkers flying off the table!

Then it was let’s make a deal time! People didn’t want bags of sinkers, they wanted half buckets of sinkers. The captain of the queen mary got all the 4 oz sinkers and that started it off. Paulie D and his hand truck got one hell of a work out, he was running half buckets of sinkers out to cars and trucks the rest of the day. By 1200hrs we were sold out of sinkers and lures and anchors. We had afew fishing pole and some old bottles and that was it.

Getting back to the building and getting everything put away it was time to sit back and start planning for next year! May be we can get 2500lbs this time!

We had our best year ever, we made over $1300!  I would like to thank Ocean fire company #1 for the table” you guys are the best”, and I want to thank Sue, Flo, Joann, Ali, Tom C,     Tom T, BOB, Mike B, Paulie D, and new member Joe P for all their hand work in pulling this off.

North Atlantic White side Dolphin Rescue.....

Wed Feb 9, 2011, Call for stranded dolphin in mantoloking. First on scene where volunteers from Jenkinsons aquarium, Tom Trafer was first of the dive team to respond followed by Doug hack and Tom Conroy.

There were also 2 members of the Mantoloking Police department there We stayed on scene waiting for Marine mammal stranding center to arrive. The fact that it was on such a deserted beach kept the onlookers away. We kept the dolphin's skin wet by pouring water over it.

The MMSC (Marine Mammal Stranding Center) identified it as a young North Atlantic White side. Once they arrived we loaded the dolphin into a sling and transported it up to their waiting vehicle.

Ice Training ~2011~

On Sunday, 1/16/11, the Point Pleasant Beach First Aid Squad - divers and EMTs - had a very productive Ice Rescue/Dive drill. For some long-time members, this was an annual refresher, but for several newer members this was a first-time exposure to these scenarios. We don't necessarily get ice thick enough to train on/under every winter, so the last few weeks of cold weather turned out to be a blessing.


We used a bayside cove off of Bergen Avenue in Mantoloking for the drill. Lt. Barcus, former diver and Liaison with Mantoloking PD, stopped by and made sure that the local authorities and residents were aware that this was a drill.

On arrival, Chief Nesley first reviewed how to evaluate ice conditions and getting on safely. Our drysuited divers then went to test the extent of walkable ice. (You could, of course, easily discover this by just walking until you break through; it was walkable two steps before that point.) Alternately, we practiced sensing the first flexing of the ice, and then got down on hands and knees, and then spread out flat to distribute weight and stay on top of things as long as possible.

Once in, everyone then practiced pulling him/herself and a victim out of the hole. This is not easy when the edge continues to break underneath the weight of two people. We then demonstrated that a human chain is an effective remedy for this, as is use of a tethered backboard. Asst. Chief Melo also presented patient care protocols once any victim is removed from the ice.

We then prepared for scuba dives under the ice. We started out with the standard triangular entry hole (which came out very neat this time). Seven divers then took turns being harnessed, tethered, and tendered under the ice. Our line pull system is a simple but effective means of communciation between diver and tender, so we practiced delivering instructions very deliberately.

Tom T was first in and experienced some navigation issues on his first ice foray since last year, but his second assigned course went much more smoothly. Getting comfortable under the ice takes time, as first timer Dave found out next. Doug and Tom C took their turns with smooth results, although the vis by the hole was getting murky.

On Sue's run, she'd been instructed to come up to the bottom of the ice in the middle of the cove so that Chief Nesley could show everyone topside what a diver's bubble trail looks like through the ice. However, the ice was too thick and frosty to much make out the diver, but they cut a fresh hole big enough to fit a head out. Sue once again proved that you shouldn't expect to be able to chisel your way out from down below with a knife (Newton was right - equal and opposite reactions). Finally, Eric and Chet took their turns, and we all wondered how they navigate so well under these conditions. All the while, Flo stayed topside with EMTs Jen, Max, Tom G, and Captain Meany, briefing them on what the divers were doing and the assistance they might need upon exit.

Having spent over 3 hours on and under the ice, most of us had cold hands, but everyone (wet and dry) felt that this was very productive. You never know what you'll get a real ice call, but we feel better prepared to respond.

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Pumpkin Carving fest 2010....

On Sunday, October 24th, 2010, the Point Pleasant Beach First Aid Dive Team hosted Yet Another Annual Underwater Pumpkin Carving Contest (we’ve totally lost count). We had a small turnout this year, but that just meant more cider and donuts for those who could make it!

Among the entries were Robert’s self portrait (including the tissue sticking out his nose) and another likeness of our Chief Diver (which, despite the blatant attempt to appeal to the judge’s vanity, still wasn’t enough to garner a prize). Tom Trafer crafted a crow-and-bat cage for the Most Creative prize, while Doug’s seahorse and Sue’s octopus tied for Best Carved.






Flo and Tom continued their team’s legacy in the Cheap Joke Award with the Toothpick Puffer. Despite the fact that they only actually carved three circles, they almost lost all their props when they opened their bag underwater and forgot that toothpicks will want to float away! They struggled valiantly to capture all the fugitives, resulting in yet another successful goofy pumpkin. Will they ever be dethroned???

It was a beautiful day topside, so we really appreciated that some of our families stopped by to visit the finished works and share a little fun with us.

As always, many thanks go to Cheesequake Farms of Old Bridge, NJ, for donating cider and the pumpkins! (We roasted the seeds later on for a great snack.) This event is only possible with their support.

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Rescue 34 Boat Training....

Between the bad vis last week, and the nearshore leftovers from Hurricane Earl, our Rescue students and other Dive Team members have spent the last two weekends training with our boat and more surface rescue techniques.


We took Rescue 34 out (our 16 foot Zodiac rigid hull inflatable), first launching in Barnegat Bay and heading north up the Point Pleasant Canal, a manmade channel to Manasquan River, then out the busy inlet to the ocean.


An experienced crew member offered this advice about Rescue 34 to the new crew: "You don't ride in this boat; you hang on to it." We worked together to read the waves and shift body weight appropriately, allowing the driver to better get up on plane readily and maneuver efficiently. We also practiced coordinated surface scans and communication protocols with the boat operator about surrounding boat traffic.


Offshore, we had a little space to practice surface rescue techniques, such as dropping a rescuer off the boat to directly assist a victim in the water, and then extracting the victim. Chief Nesley and Tom C first demonstrated how to safely roll out of the boat at high speed (which, if you execute correctly, is a bit of fun). They then showed how to get yourself back into the boat unassisted, and how to assist a victim. Rescue students Milton and Joe took a few turns at it themselves and shortly showed improvement. We returned nearshore to practice closer to the beach swells, and at one point, two BayHead lifeguards even swam out through the waves to meet us. They got themselves into the boat, and we gave them a lift two beaches north back to where they came from. Milton and Joe demonstrated their new high speed dropoff-in-the-surf skills, which the lifeguards then replicated. They thought it was cool enough that they swam back out to the boat, climbed in again, and we dropped them off a second time at the beach where we started!

We've also taken advantage of the warm water to get in a little open ocean swimming and snorkeling. Today, we finally found clear water - 1 mile offshore! Free diving down from the surface, we found near-tropical water full of comb jellies and salps (aka "jellyblobs"). Fortunately, these organisms are not stingers, so we emerged unscathed.

Although much of this training is beyond the scope of a PADI Rescue Diver course, these are all practical skills for us to have under our belts in Point Pleasant Beach.

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Rescue Dive Training then a Rescue...

Rescue class continued on Sunday, September 12 for Milton and Tom T. With the annual Tube Race coming up next week and some sloppy waves building on the beach, we began there with surf entries. We worked on observing the surf, timing waves, and making over and under approaches. We also practiced entries and assists with rescue cans, and assisting a victim out through the surf.

We then moved our operations further up Manasquan River at Gull Island. We revisited panicked and unconscious divers at the surface, and utilized several forms of egress.




We had just finished the session, visited the 7-11 across the street for coffee, and actually jumped into a real rescue! Another dive class was beginning with the tide still coming in strongly. Most of the class was sufficiently far enough away from the railroad bridge to function, but one pair of divers ended up in the center of the channel too close to the bridge and was swept underneath. All by itself, this presents no danger, but the tide washed them up against the marina docks. Here all they could do was hold on, as the current was still too strong to swim back against, and it would have been difficult to work back to shore along the docks from there while being washed underneath.

Milton and Tom headed down the marina docks to assist from above while Chief Nesley jumped in from the bridge for the quickest response from water. When contact was made, the divers were quickly tiring from hanging on in the swift current and at least one was becoming panicky. Chief Nesley held onto the first diver and had her float under the dock to the leeward side, making it easier for Milton and Tom to haul her up onto the dock fully geared. The second diver was instructed to also move to the downstream side of the dock, and the extraction was repeated.

Our Rescue Divers learn very quickly that class sessions are not just academic exercises - skills really sink in (no pun intended) when you immediately apply them. You never know what is going to happen!

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