Public safety divers are individuals who work in law enforcement or in search and rescue operations. The training and dive locations of public safety divers are different from recreational divers. They also have special equipment and specific dates. Public safety divers are responsible for protecting the environment and the lives of others on the surface. A public safety diver will also be well-equipped for the unique challenges of law enforcement work and the many tasks it entails.
Training requirements
Public safety divers must complete several training courses. The first phase of the course involves knowledge development in a classroom environment. The students will learn different techniques to solve missions and conduct searches. Students will also learn about various equipment required for such missions. Students will then practice their search and rescue skills in controlled conditions. Public safety divers that want to work in dangerous or contaminated waters will benefit from these courses.
The ERDI course, which is the most basic program in public safety diver training, is approved by NFPA, STATE and OSHA. It has been approved for training by OSHA, STATE, NFPA. Next is the ERDI Level II course. This course covers advanced techniques in emergency response diving including dry suits and full-face masks. After the training, you will receive your ERDI certification card. You will need to be certified by an ERDI instructor.
Public safety divers play an essential role in law enforcement
It is important to recognize the importance of public safety divers for law enforcement. They are often undercover officers and may encounter suspects or criminals in the ocean. They are professionals, but they do not diminish the important role of investigators or police officers. In fact, the roles of both divers and investigators are critical to the success of law enforcement operations.
In some cases, LEOs use dive teams to respond to crimes in water, but in many cases, they will also respond to incidents on land. The divers will be in patrol boats or small boats and then transform into scuba gear as soon as they reach the water's edge. LEOs and investigators communicate with each other using spoken codes via police radio frequencies when conducting land-based investigations. These codes cannot be broken underwater. Therefore, divers will typically learn American Sign Language in order to communicate with investigators.
Gear required
Divers in public safety have access to a wide variety of safety gear. Some are provided by the agency while others must provide their own. All divers should be properly equipped so that zero visibility environments are easier to manage. A full-face face mask is an essential piece of gear. Public safety divers are not permitted to dive in contaminated waters or near vehicles or submerged bodies. Equally important is the quality of the gear.
PSD courses combine parts of several diving specialties. These could include advanced dives or rescue dives. To aid in rescue and recovery operations, divers may be required to learn technical skills and use nitrox. An additional requirement for PSD divers may be to be trained in another type of diving or in a special environment. These divers might be asked to perform rescue and search missions under conditions not experienced by a professional diver.