For those of you who have driven past Hinkle and Deegan Lakes today and witnessed what you thought was a live rescue, you are close.

 

Members of Bridgeport Fire and Emergency Department are taking part in rescue training today; utilizing lifelike mannequins to gain adequate knowledge regarding various cold water rescue scenarios.

 

“Paramedics and EMTs have recertification every year to keep our licenses renewed,” said the department’s Mark McClain. “This year, there happens to be ice on the water.”

 

The department has recently expanded the training program, doing more hands-on training exercises and spending less time in the classroom, he said.

 

Today’s training provides a variety of learning opportunities.

 

“It gets the new guys familiar with the water suits and how they operate,” McClain said. “There’s a big floating person out there and it gets them familiar with how to throw the shore lines and if that doesn’t work, to go to the second line.”

 

In pairs, trainees go out on the lake on boats, actually putting the “victim” on a backboard and pulling him to safety.

 

“They then go over a medical checklist for various things that could happen,” McClain said.

 

Once the mannequin is pulled to shore, he is taken to the ambulance where various medical scenarios are played out.

 

The mannequin has simulated breathing and coughing sounds if certain buttons are hit. It also makes lifelike moaning and groaning sounds and even can simulate heart rhythm irregularities. 

 

 It’s a pretty expensive piece of equipment – comparable to the price of a small vehicle, McClain said – but well-worth the investment for training purposes, he said.

 

“When someone is in the water for a long period of time, his heart eventually stops and there are some other irregular heart rhythms he is thrown into,” McClain said. “If he’s not dead yet, he will be so we have to learn how to treat each scenario.”

 

The training opportunity is vital for new medics and a good experience for everyone participating.

 

Under the direction of Captain Scott Wilburn and Lt. Greg Pigg, today’s entire shift is taking part in the live water rescue training.

 

McClain and others have been called in to serve as a standby crew.

 

“A lot of times, calls come in and training has to stop to go to the calls,” he said. “This way, the training can continue.”

 

Serving as today’s instructors are Keith Linger and Ben Tacy. Linger is a member of Bridgeport Fire Department. A paramedic with Bridgeport Fire and Emergency Department, Tacy is also part of the EMT  program at Fairmont State University.

 

The water rescue training will continue Saturday. Tuesday’s shift also took part in the training exercises. There was a training scheduled for Wednesday, but it was canceled due to weather.

 

“There was supposed to be a big car pileup in the back of the parking lot,” he said.