News
Seattle rescue diver: ‘It was like being in a washing machine’
Three weeks after a boat flipped near Alki Point off Seattle, divers are only just beginning to share the details of a harrowing underwater rescue.
For at least one of the three divers with the Seattle Fire Department’s Technical Rescue Team, it was the first time he responded to a capsized boat. For all them it was a high-risk operation.
On November 15, an emergency call came in that a boat had capsized and one person missing. Seattle Fire’s Technical Rescue Team quickly launched its boat from a fire station near Coleman Dock and headed to Alki.
Seattle Firefighter and diver Mike Todd remembers the intense wind that kicked up white caps and the frigid air. Todd suited up on the boat ride and started thinking about the missing man.
“When you’re going out there, you say a little prayer for the person who might be involved,” he said.
On that day, it wasn’t a bad idea for firefighters to say a prayer for themselves.
“It was really a high risk operation,” said Lt. Frank Brennan.
The lieutenant would manage the rescue operation topside while working with the Coast Guard. The Guard initially responded to the call and had already plucked three men from the water by the time Seattle Fire’s Technical team arrived.
The men’s boat somehow flipped upside down. Brennan worked with the Coast Guard to keep his divers safe. The choppy waters made it a challenge to keep the Fire Department’s rescue boat positioned with the prop away from those divers.
Firefighter divers encountered a 4,000-pound boat that had turtled. It was bobbing in surging seas with debris from the diving boat everywhere.
“The boat being on surface and having the boat moving around is what made it so dangerous,” said firefighter/diver Colin McElroy. “It would have been easier if the boat was completely submerged.”
Todd put it even more succinctly:
“It was like being in a washing machine,” he said.
The wind was relentless and the air was biting and brisk. The waves topped out at four feet.
Firefighters McElroy and Todd described what looked like an obstacle course.
“It’s not just the waves, but all the debris in the water. It’s the ropes, air lines,straps, everything you would find in a commercial vessel is floating along the water there. It was definitely a different environment than we are used to training in all the time,” McElroy said.
“You just didn’t know what would came in your frame in the next moment. It was like being in a crowded group of people and you didn’t know what was going to come at you next,” Todd said.
Experience diver Anthony Collins was the missing man, and the last place he was seen was in the wheelhouse, which was now upside down and taking on water. Since the hull was still on the water’s surface, rescue divers hoped there might be an air pocket in the wheelhouse.
“If he was still alive he may be trying to survive in that air pocket,” said Lt. Brennan.
The team agreed that the wheelhouse would be a deathtrap for their divers. Their only safe option was to reach through the wheelhouse door and hope Collins would be within reach.
An already risky rescue attempt just got riskier when they learned their underwater radios didn’t work and their only way to communicate was gone. At that point training kicked in and McElroy and Todd headed for the boat’s wheelhouse.
“You could see the patient in there right away,” said McElroy.
They where right, and there was an air pocket in the wheelhouse. Anthony Collins’ head was above the water line and he appeared unresponsive.
“The biggest hazard was the boat coming up and down on us,” said Todd, who remembered the boat rising and crashing down four feet with every wave.
“Anyone of them could have been hit on the head or entangled,” said Lt. Brennan.
Firefighter McElroy couldn’t reach Anthony. Measured but hurried, he inched into the doorway closer to that death trap with every reach.
“Colin was able to get in there — he did a great job. It wasn’t just reaching in and grabbing him, he had to keep trying and keep trying and at the same time the boat is moving up and down and the configuration of his dive equipment he could have easily been stuck in that doorway as well. So he did a great job of staying with the scene and getting a hold of Anthony,” Todd said.
Anthony Collins was unconscious and unresponsive. The Coast Guard air lifted him to Harborview Medical Center.
“Unfortunately for the family, it didn’t go 100 percent how we wanted it to,” said McElroy.
Although Collins had been underwater for nearly an hour, the firefighters were hopeful the air pocket may have saved him.
“We take the risk so the victim will survive and it didn’t happen in this case,” said Lt. Brennan, who insisted it’s a risk Seattle Fire will take every time.
For McElroy it was also a first.
“I’ve never been on a capsized vessel call,” he said. “It’s usually a kayaker in trouble.”
For Mike Todd, the day ended as it began with a prayer.
“You pray for Anthony Collin’s family,” he said.
Seattle Fire’s Technical Rescue Team operates 24/7 and is made up of 27 men and one woman. Seattle Fire says the Coast Guard’s “excellent work” and initial response was vital.
Source: www.komonews.com
Fire on Monroe Bravo is the latest book in the Jack Collier series by Fred Lockwood. Our story begins with our lead characters, Jack and Sandro, owners of Marine Salvage & Investigation Company, arriving on the Monroe Bravo Oil & Gas Platform in the North Sea. Having secured a contract for their vessel the MV Stavanger to act as support ship to the platform for TransGlobal Oil, our protagonists are on a celebratory visit.
However almost as soon as they arrive a series of explosions rock the platform, causing huge damage, loss of life and the very real danger of a massive human, ecological and financial disaster.
As the danger mounts for both our heroes and the surviving workers, Jack and Sandro will have to escape the inferno, all while trying to save the platform and the men still trapped unable to help themselves.
The disaster sets the scene for the unfolding story lines following the fate of the platform and our main characters, the police investigation into a suspected terrorist act and the actions of TransGlobal Oil as they attempt to navigate the pubic outcry and financial repercussions.
In his eighth book, Fire on Monroe Bravo, Fred Lockwood delivers an explosive thriller, with plenty of above and in-water drama, and our heroes fighting for survival, what more can you ask for?
We thoroughly recommend this read and look forward to the next in the series. For more information about his book series, you can check out the reviews of his previous books here on Scubaverse.
- Title: Fire On Monroe Bravo
- Author: Fred Lockwood
- ISBN: 979-8325324536
Available in a paperback version and for Kindle from Amazon and book stores.
In June we were incredibly fortunate to be invited to dive in Alonissos, a small Greek Island in the Sporades island chain located in the North Aegean Sea. While I have long been a big fan of the Greek Islands as a great holiday destination, I had not had the opportunity to do any diving on previous visits and Mike and I were extremely excited to see what Alonissos had to offer both above and below the surface!
The Sporades are easily accessible via the airport in Skiathos (the first island in the chain), which is served by Jet2 flights from all major UK airports from May through October. Numerous ferries and charter boats make island hopping from Skiathos Town a breeze. After an hour boat ride, the picturesque port of Patitiri was a wonderful introduction to Alonissos, where we were met by our gracious hosts Kostas of Albedo Travel and Dias of Alonissos Triton Dive Center. Mike and I were delighted to be staying at the Paradise Hotel, aptly named for its stunning views over the sea and great location for walking to the waterfront.
Alonissos is beautifully situated in the National Marine Park of Alonissos and the Northern Sporades, the largest marine protected area in Europe. The surrounding seas offer fabulous marine life, including incredibly rare species such as the Mediterranean monk seal. They boast deep walls covered in gorgonians and sponges, stunning topography with caverns, swimthroughs and pinnacles, and the first accessible ancient shipwreck from 500BC!
In locations where historical sites have been reported, the waters are largely restricted, but with collaboration between government, underwater archeologists and dive centres, incredible underwater museums are being created for a truly unique diving experience. Alonissos is home to the first of these, the Ancient Shipwreck of Peristera Accessible Underwater Archeological Site. The chance to dive into history (along with reports of healthy reef life and amazing underwater topography) meant Mike and I were keen to get in the water.
Our introduction to the diving around Alonissos was at the Agios Georgios Pinnacles, in the channel between Alonissos and Skopelos. This fantastic site was named “The Chimney,’ and proved to have a huge amount to see. We got to a decent depth here (over 25m), and marvelled at a colourful reef wall with a wonderful swim through whose rocky walls were absolutely covered with life. As well as brilliant topography there was no shortage of macro life here. We saw numerous nudibranchs, five different species in total. The second dive at Mourtias reef nearby was a shallower dive along a nice wall with lots of crevices. Several moray eels and grouper called this site home. We enjoyed looking in the crevices for lobster and smaller benthic life, such as cup corals and tunicates.
Our itinerary allowed us two dives a day with afternoons left to explore the island with our hire car and evenings to enjoy the famous Greek hospitality. This proved to be a lovely mix of in-water and land based diversions.
The next days diving to the Gorgonian Gardens and Triton’s Cave was to be even better! These two stunning sites are nothing short of fabulous. The Gorgonian Gardens was a deep wall near to the Agios Georgios islands. The ever-present currents in this deep channel meant that the sea life was amazing … the namesake Gorgonian sea fans dotted the wall at a depth of 30 to 50 meters, getting ever larger the deeper we went. Above 30m was by no means less beautiful, with sponges, corals, scorpionfish, moray eels and some rare and colourful nudibranchs.
The second shallower dive of the day was to Triton’s Cave or the Cavern of Skopelos, on the east side of that island. The spectacular rock formations had wild striations both above and below the water making a truly epic topography. The cavern entrance was at 14m, and big enough for a buddy pair, winding up to 6m and passing two beautiful windows out into the blue. Emerging from the cavern, the light at the shallower depths and the incredible rock formations made for a fantastic gentle swimming safety stop and we all surfaced by the boat with massive grins.
Check out our next blog :Alonissos: The complete diving destination (Part 2)” to hear about our amazing dive on the 2500 year old Peristera Wreck!
Thanks to:
Alonissos Triton Dive Center https://bestdivingingreece.com/
Albedo Travel https://alonissosholidays.com/activities/
Paradise Hotel https://paradise-hotel.gr/
Alonissos Municipality https://alonissos.gr/en/
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