Response to Reported Missing Swimmer...

This summer has quickly proven to be incredibly busy for the Point Pleasant Beach First Aid Squad and its Dive Team. Over the long Fourth of July holiday weekend alone, we responded to nearly 100 emergency calls, many of which were heat- and/or beach-related. Off the beach, water temperatures have shot up over 10 degrees in the last two weeks, so it is suddenly very comfortable to be in the ocean (we normally don’t experience these water temperatures consistently until well-into August). Check out http://www.thecoolroom.org/swimmers/swim_sst.htm for satellite imagery of local sea surface temps.

Although we’ve been missing some dive time to help cover all the land-based first aid calls, we’ve managed a few dives in the warm water. Shark River Inlet, in Avon , is out of our normal coverage area, but is only accessible for diving from 5pm – 8am during the summer, so we took advantage of the opportunity to do night dives there the last two weekends.

On Friday, 7/10, the night dive session was a little challenging with a quick tide change and low visibility. Immediately upon exiting the water, we were notified that a call for a possible missing swimmer was in progress back in Point Pleasant . Assistant Chief Melo had assumed command of Beach Operations and was already on scene with Brandon, Tom T, and Paul, and a first aid crew. When the still-wet dive crew arrived, that added 5 more sets (Chet, Milton, Sue, Andy, and Dave) of eyes on the beach. Also present were the Ocean FDs #1 and #2 and the Point Pleasant Boro FD and FA. With very rough surf and no confirmed victim, we conducted our primary search from shore with lights. The USCG, State Police, and Budget Towing (captained by Tom Hurst and crewed by our divers Tom C and Doug) participated in the search off shore, taking great caution to stay out of the rough conditions by the beach. At some point, a white object which could have been a t-shirt was spotted, so two rescue swimmers were sent to make contact - Milton got a rough lesson in rough surf entries, but he wisely extracted himself, while Chief Nesley went out to the object; once there he could only describe debris and lots of sticky sea foam, which could have been mistaken for a solid object. The USCG vessel even deployed two flares to help illuminate the night surf, and we could still find no victim. Upon further communication, it was revealed that the original emergency call from a bystander did not clearly describe an actual human body in the surf, and at least one experienced fisherman relayed that ocean sunfish (Mola mola) had been spotted around Manasquan Inlet and close to shore earlier in the day. Based on direct observations and the fact that still no one had been reported missing, we determined that this was a false alarm.

The following day, the first aid calls (almost all on the beach and boardwalk) just kept piling up on top of each other, and ANOTHER dive call came in - boat on fire, people in water. Four rescue divers got fully suited-up for a surface rescue while bouncing around in the back of 347 in the time it took to drive to the call. What the crew didn't know was that the USCG canceled us on the way there, so when we jumped out the back of the truck on arrival, we were very surprised to discover that we'd been re-routed to a first aid call on the beach. (Unless someone in the cabin tells you, you really have no idea what's going on outside when you're in the back of the dive rescue truck.)



It's going to be a loooong summer....

World Oceans Day ~Jenkinson's~

Jenkinson's Aquarium, located on the boardwalk in Point Pleasant Beach, once again celebrated World Oceans Day (officially June 8th) this past Saturday, June 5th. In addition to special arts & crafts and the presence of several environmental stewardship organizations, the Dvie Team was once again invited to share our underwater explorations with visitors.

We set up a display area featuring local underwater videos, artifacts, shells, and the infamous "Drysuit Guy". He might not be a superhero, but the fully assembled and inflated set of winter dive gear always makes for a great photo opportunity! The later part of the afternoon sent us especially interested visitors (probably looking to escape the hot, humid beach and boardwalk outside)

The highlight of our day was still conducting scuba diving demonstrations in the seal tank. Seaquin, Coral, and Luseal (the residents) were good-natured about sharing their tank with us three times throughout the day. Visitors got to see what a fully-suited Jersey diver looks like as we performed basic mask, regulator, and buoyancy skills. We were also glad to FINALLY be in wetsuits for the season; the tank was 74 degrees F, toasty compared to the 54 of the ocean.

It was a long day to be on display, but most of the Team was able to help out for at least part of the day, which included responding to four first aid calls around town.

For more about World Oceans Day, visit http://www.theoceanproject.org/

Pygmy Sperm Whale...

The Point Pleasant First Aid Dive Team has had some very interesting
activities in the recent years. This story ranks high among their
finest rescues. Here is the report.

At 1530 hours on May 15, 2010 the Point Pleasant First Aid Dive Team
was dispatched to Mantoloking Beach to aid a beached whale. The day was
beautiful. Not a cloud was in the sky, air temps were in the high 70's,
and a mild wind was blowing out of the west. Conditions at the shore
were excellent and if not for this call, divers would have considered
an ocean dive. When duty calls the dive team responds in numbers and
effect. This day was one of those days.

Assistant chief, Flo Melo, and Tom Conroy had gotten alerted earlier
and were already on scene. Chief diver, Chet Nesley, was called and he
notified the squad where Tom Gormley made the call to dispatch the dive
team on Chet's order. All team members were notified to go directly to
1073 Route 35 south in Mantoloking, the roadway site of the call. Dave
Gibson and Norva Gormley drove 342 to the site. Tom G loaded 347 with
the requested gear and drove to the site. First Aid Captain, Jerry
Meaney, drove 340 to the site as well.

On scene Flo and Tom C were attending the whale with the aid of several
local residents and beach goers. They had gotten the whale carefully
situated on the edge of the surf on the up[hill berm to relieve as much
stress as they could. Flo called immediately for a stokes basket from
Jerry M, while Tom G delivered dry suits to the site and donned his own
for immediate water assistance. Doug and Tom C also donned dry suits.
The water was still only in the high 40 degree range and people were
standing in the cold water assisting the whale for many minutes
already. Fortunately waves were only in the 1 to 2 foot range due to
the westerly winds.




The Mantoloking Fire Department and Police Department was called and
would arrive momentarily. The US Coast Guard was on alert and standing
by. Meanwhile members of the dive team were arriving and this was a
success of the E-dispatch system. Doug Hatch and Paul DeSalvo from the
team had been E-dispatched.

Meanwhile the whale was being supported and protected from incoming
waves and was physically moved onto the stokes basket with a mighty
effort of all involved. Children in the area were asked to name the
female whale which was identified as a Pygmy sperm whale according to
Flo, Tom C, and Chet who are also members of the Marine Mammal
Stranding Center, which is located in Brigantine. The children named
the whale Suzie. We all were doing our utmost to save and comfort Suzie
in her time of need. There is no doubt that humans feel a definite
attraction and need to assist at a time like this. Except for a police
officer, all of those involved were non paid but professional
volunteers and requested local residents.

With the arrival of the Fire Dept, we were gaining manpower to be able
to do some heavy lifting. The plan was to move Suzie off the beach so
she could eventually be placed on a large box truck coming from the
MMSC and off to their center for care. A plan was developed and
actuated to first slide Suzie off the berm onto level sand and then to
lift her onto the bed of the town's pickup. Suzie was 9 feet long and
weighed approximately 600 pounds. Moving her was done purely by human
muscle and it succeeded nicely. The pickup needed a pull from a bobcat
tractor to make it off the beach and again manpower lifted Suzie onto
the MMSC's truck.

A loud cheer was finally made to the satisfaction of a growing crowd of
interested and supporting onlookers. This was a job well done out of
love and admiration for our fellow creatures that live so close to us
in our Atlantic Ocean. A big thank you goes to all who participated and
assisted. The dive team could not have done the job alone though they
were a strong reason for the success.



Several local and statewide media services came to the scene and
interviewed Flo and Chet on behalf of the dive team. We made news in a
very favorable way today.

The call was completed at 1820 hours and the team completed cleaning
gear by 2030 hours. It was a long day. The sad news is that Suzie
succumbed to her condition on the way to Brigantine despite our efforts
to keep her wet, cool, and protected from sunlight. We had done our
best and would do this again in a Point Pleasant heartbeat.

Report by Tom Gormley for the Pt Pleasant First Aid Dive team

Local media coverage here...
and here...

Ring Recovery....

On Friday night, April 30, 2010, the Dive Team received an underwater Search and Recovery request from one of the town's Police Detectives. A couple, while working around their boat at Kingsbridge Marina, reported a missing purse. The woman had placed it on the cover of their dock box, but a wind blew the cover open, flinging the small purse into the water. Chief Nesley, Paul, and Dave went in at 10 pm to sweep under the dock to search for the purse. The divers had about 10 feet of visibility, but with the darkness and swiftly moving current, the object was not recovered.

We returned on Saturday morning with Chet, Dave, Milton, and Sue. This time, the boat owners met us at the dock and we were able to get a first-hand account of how, where, and when the item went missing. Most importantly, we learned that the tide was outgoing at the time of the loss (we had previously been told incoming), and that the brick-size purse had a ring of keys in it. This allowed us to better plan a search area, considering water movement, bottom composition, and how quickly the object should have sank.


Milton and Sue began their search by stringing a line between the dock (right under the boat) over to the railroad bridge to the east, with both ends anchored. They used this for visual reference to sweep back and forth, covering a large patch of real estate where the purse should have headed when it was lost. Meanwhile, Chet and Dave conducted an intensive search under the bridge itself; if the tide did bring the purse this far, the jumbled bottom structure and debris there would have likely snagged any rolling object.

After about a half hour of fruitless searching by both teams, Milton and Sue changed course to recheck around the dock and to the west. Lucky for Sue, she had trouble clearing one of her ears! Normally, that's not a lucky event, but her delayed descent dropped her down separated from Milton. While she was getting her bearings to decide whether to pursue her partner or sweep under an adjacent dock on her own, SHE LANDED ON THE PURSE.

All four divers regrouped and headed back to the truck, appearing to call it quits. The couple saw us ungearing and wanted to know how things went. Chief Nesley had some Good News and some Bad News for them. He gave them the Bad News first: "From this dock to the OTHER side of the bridge, it's not there." Then the Good News: "It was right over there, ten feet away from your boat." Roseann was ecstatic, so much so that she didn't think twice about giving bear hugs to four soaking wet divers. Her purse was soaked, but it had been zippered shut, so nothing had been lost. Even the ChapStick survived!

2010 "Sale of the Sinkers"....

On Sunday, February 21, 2010, we were all geared up for one of our annual fundraisers. Every year, Ocean Fire Company #1, stationed in Point Pleasant Beach, runs a Fisherman's Flea Market, renting space in Antrim Elementary School in the center of town. As a professional courtesy to another EMS organization, the Fire Department has always provided us a table, free of charge, to allow us
to sell our wares. SELL WE DID!

In and among all the fishing and nautical supplies, our table was to feature about 1 ton of lead (we're not exaggerating) in the form of recovered sinkers. No sooner did we arrive at the school, before the flea market opened, and other vendors were fighting over who would get to purchase our scrap lead in bulk. Assistant Chief Melo brokered a couple of deals, and then we focused on smaller sales. We started at 20 ounces for $1, and it only got better for customers from there. Fishermen who didn't even know that they needed sinkers bought
sinkers! Who could resist, considering that our sinkers were pre-seasoned,
field-tested, bottom-compatible, AND guaranteed to sink!



"You dropped it, we found it!" We also sold a basin of recovered lures, three
salvaged fishing poles, and a dozen "nautical antiques" (old bottles). Chet,
Flo, three Toms, two Daves, Doug, Sue, Mark, and new guys Chris and Justin, all
took a turn behind the table.

Our goal: Don't carry anything back.
Mission accomplished.

Now we've got to start collecting sinkers AGAIN....

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Ice Rescue Training and another Seal save...

For the middle of winter, this was an interesting day. It started when Flo Melo, our Assistant Dive Chief, got a call from the Marine Mammal Stranding Center to investigate two more local seal sightings in Manasquan and Brielle, neighboring towns just to the north across the Manasquan River. Throughout our winter, it is very common for seals to come ashore to rest or nap, but this isn't common knowledge. When Flo and Tom went to evaluate the harbor seal on the beach, some bystanders weren't even aware that there were ANY seals in New Jersey. Consulting with the MMSC via cell phone, it was determined that this one was in no distress and required no human assistance other than to be left alone. When we returned later in the afternoon, all that was left was a set of flipper tracks back to the ocean. The second seal, laying on a dock in Brielle, was even a little feisty, vocally letting Flo and Tom know that he did indeed wish to be left alone. We are told that every holding tank in the Stranding Center's Brigantine facility is full right now, so this was good news for everyone!




The Dive Team then conducted an ice rescue drill with the Mantoloking Fire Department. Our Squad provides coverage for Point Pleasant Beach, BayHead, and Mantoloking, so this was a great opportunity to work with other emergency service volunteers who might one day provide us surface support. It was 40 degrees, windy, and rainy, but everyone was ready to drill. Chief Nesley first demonstrated to the firefighters to how to evaluate ice conditions, especially if properly suited divers are not yet available to assist with an ice rescue. The firefighters were then introduced to the drysuits that our divers are outfitted with, and they practiced helping a diver into the suit. We were
especially concerned with proper handling of the suit's zipper and ensuring proper neck seals.


We then went though various shore support and rescue options for the firefighters. Everyone took their turns with throw bags, the safest way to get a line out to someone in ice without risking someone else falling through. We then demonstrated backboard use to remove a victim from an ice hole, and the firefighters got the feel of hauling the board back to shore. We also might call upon the Fire Department to tend line for us. Just like last week's ice diving drill, we practiced tying appropriate knots for a diver's harness. Several of the firefighters also got a feel of our line pull system of communication.


We had a lot of line to clean, but the firefighters were introduced to the equipment we might use and now know what to expect during an ice rescue. We are thankful to know that one day they could have our backs.




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Ice Rescue Drill ~2010~

On January 10, 2010, the Point Pleasant Beach First Aid Dive Team got the year's serious training off to a good start with a very productive Ice Rescue drill. The weather has been below freezing for two weeks now, with the nights dipping into the teens, so several of the coves on the Barnegat Bay-side of our coverage area were iced over enough to re-drill on ice surface rescues and ice diving.
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As always, we started by evaluating the ice conditions. About 4 inches of ice covered the center of the cove, which was stable enough for us to prepare the triangular hole that is standard for ice diver access and egress. All divers were outfitted with harnesses and tethered for their dives. To minimize the chances of tangles, only one or two divers were in at a time, each one with a personal tender, who has as much responsibility for a safe operation as the
diver.

We practiced our line pull system of communication, which is simple but works well, especially with each diver focused strongly on navigation. Under the ice in these coves, many of our natural navigation cues (sun angle, sand ripples, channel contours, established currents) are unreliable. Surrounded by steel bulkheads, our underwater compasses worked in some places and not-so-well in others. Eric gets the award for Best, Long, Straight Line Swim. Tom Trafer, training for the first time with ice, found out quickly how easy it is to get disoriented, and the value of an attentive tender. Fortunately, visibility was 5-10 feet, so we all got a nice underwater tour. We didn't see too much in the way of active marine life, but Sue located numerous snails and worm mounds, and
Chet found a small eel, frozen right up under the ice.

We then drilled on Surface Ice Rescue. What do we do when someone falls through the ice? We practiced crossing the ice while distributing our weights, so that the rescuer does not fall though for as long as possible. We then practiced falling through to ensure that you yourself do not go under. The harder parts were getting yourself back out, and, most importantly, getting a victim back out of the ice. We all practiced using a backboard to remove an unresponsive victim out of the loose ice closer to the bay.
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Thanks go to one of our Squad's EMTs for keeping an eye out for us, providing hot packs for our hands and chocolate chip cookies too! As much as most of are NOT fans of long cold spells, this provided us with a great opportunity to drill on handling a likely winter rescue scenario.
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New Years 2010...

On Jan 1, 2010 we did our annual 1st dive of the year at the Manasquan River Railroad Bridge. The weather was cool but calm with no wind and air temps in the low 40's. Water was a bit cool at 38 degrees but we had 5 feet of vis. The vis doesn't sound like much but after getting blown out for several weeks in a row it was welcomed.
Sue L,. Doug H, Milton R, Joe, S,. Chet N, Tom G, and Tom C all dove. Flo M and Bill C provided shore support. Dive times varied from 20 minutes to 45 minutes for the very hardy. I came out with numb hands after being in the water for about 25 minutes. I managed to find some copper sheathing from some unknown wreck. Chet found a blob top belfast round bottle and a smooth round bottle. Some coke bottles were also found.
We were the only hardy fools there considering we hit the water around 8AM or so. Everyone did have a good time though and we followed it up with a search for some frozen underwater lights on one of the inland shore lakes. Afterwards we had a good lunch at the local squad building.

I have to say that this year was relatively pleasant compared to last year when the wind chill made it minus 18 degrees on Jan 1, 2009. I am hoping for more global warming to kick in for next year.

Hope you had a fun New Year's Eve and Day and will have more to come in 2010.
Tom G

MMSC is pleased to report that Ilya, the manatee rescued from Linden, NJ and transported to the Miami Seaquarium was released to his ocean home on December 15!

Ilya is released...

MIAMI, Fla- Ilya the wayward Manatee that was rescued by the Coast Guard in the frigid waters, near New York City, and flown back to Miami for rehabilitation, has been released this morning by his Florida caretakers into the warm waters of Biscayne Bay.The 1,100 lb mammal, who's closest genetic relative is the Elephant, was lifted out of his tank by a mechanical crane, then carried over by Sequarium staff, and freed into the placid settings of his natural habitat"...

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Save the Manatee Club has a detailed press release here...

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and FoxNews has this coverage of the event...

Thanksgiving 2009 ~Seal~

The DiveTeam responded to another call of a Seal on the beach and found the above individual catching some rays and avoiding the usual LARGE crowds that inhabit the Jersey Shore during the Summer months...

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The Marine Mammal Stranding Center responded and removed the Seal with the help of team members and took the Seal to the center in Brigantine for observation. More info and status to follow...

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Mantaloking Beach Damage ~2009~

Today's walk on the Mantoloking beach. There is no beach access, all the steps to the beach have been washed away. Notice the picture of the Lyman Av entrance, to the Cannon wreck.

Flo