London rescue squad firemen head up the swollen Thames River on Thursday,
searching for ‘white water’ in which to test their Zodiak infatable rescue boat.
The crew, from left, are Paul MacPherson, Bill Switzer and Capt. Don Pittaway, all wearing new floatation jackets.
London fire department aquatic crews went “white water” shooting Thursday and pronounced their new rescue boat “stable as hell.”
It’s an 18-foot Zodiak inflatable craft made famous by underwater explorer Jacques Cousteau and used around the world by coast guards and for such things as navigating the raging Colorado River.
“We feel quite confident in the boat – that it can handle anything the Thames can kick up,” said rescue unit fire captain Don Pittaway after trial runs on the swollen river Thursday afternoon. “It’s completely adequate for any flooding we’ll have around here.”
Fireman Paul McPherson, chief diver, was particularly interested in the stability of the Zodiak. McPherson was one of the two firemen who almost drowned last spring during a rescue attempt in the boiling waters below Fanshawe Dam near the Clarke Road bridge. The old aluminum rescue boat sank under them and it and a bundle of equipment were lost.
Luckily, it was the last rescue required last spring and it wasn’t until fall that the Zodiak and new equipment including floatation jackets for the crews were bought.
Thursday, after pushing the Zodiak through some churning white water under the CNR bridge at the forks of The Thames and charging up the rapids gap at Gibbons Park, the boat got rave reviews from the crews.
“It’s stable as hell,” said McPherson, demonstrating how the boat stayed pancake-flat in rough water. The conventional boat last year was swamped because it tipped easily.
“It took 15 guys all hanging on one side of this one pulling as hard as they could to flip it over,” McPherson said.
He said victims stranded in trees will be able to jump directly into the boat without fear of it capsizing or shipping water.
Last year a helicopter was required to hoist victims from a tree in the river near Komoka.
The Zodiak weight 225 pounds, is eight feet wide and has separate inflation compartments in case of puncture. It cost the department about $2,000, which is $1,000 less than a new boat. London’s boat was a demonstrator.
It will carry 2,700 pounds and will travel 20 to 25 m.p.h. with its 35-horsepower outboard.
The crews are getting ready for the weekend.
“With this good weather, they’ll be out there,” Pittaway said.
Last year’s rescues and near tragedies brought an outcry from taxpayers about the cost in dollars and potential lives involved in the lifesaving.
Both Fire Chief Ray Morley and Bunny Bundle canoe race organizer John Calcutt have asked amateur boaters to stay off the Thames this weekend.
The canoe race, an annual event run between St. Marys and London to raise money for crippled children, isn’t until April 30 so there will be plenty of time to practice after the river calms down, Calcutt said.
“In the past years we’ve had problems with people practicing ahead of time. We almost lost four last year,” he said.
But, just in case, the central firehall will have four men ready on each shift to launch the Zodiak into action.
