SERAT provides classroom, on-water training for fire district
The Sanibel Emergency Response Assistance Team recently extended its training sessions to the Captiva Island Fire Control District to help educate the fire crew on basic boating handling.
A critical component of the America’s Boating Club of Sanibel-Captiva, SERAT is a group of highly-trained volunteers ready to assist local authorities in the event of a maritime emergency. The group continually trains and retrains its members, and recently it shared its knowledgeable with the district.
In early December, the agency took possession of its first-ever fire and rescue boat.
Prior to its delivery, Fire Chief Jeff Pawul asked whether SERAT could provide a basic boat handling seminar, along with practical on-water training, for his team. The goal was to utilize the knowledge and training of the SERAT as a basis to educate the fire personnel on the safe operation of the new vessel.
“Partnering with the SERAT group from Sanibel was very beneficial for our guys, they are a professional group with lots of local knowledge,” Pawul said.
SERAT Team Leader Jim Strothers, working with members of his team, developed a classroom seminar designed to provide instruction on the basics of boat handling. Some of the topics covered included how propellers impact the handling and turning of a vessel, basic use of docking lines and maneuvering, departing from a dock, and docking under various weather and current conditions.
They reviewed the Navigational Rules of the Road and boat lighting for night-time navigation, as well as used the Inland Navigator’s Skills Evaluation Check List as a guide during the on-water training.
The training kicked off on Jan. 8-9 at the fire station, at 14981 Captiva Drive.
Strothers, along with SERAT members Bill Helfers, Bob Orr and Gregg Wickstra, began with a morning classroom session covering the designated subjects. Following the classroom component, various teams were deployed to the new boat to take part in the on-water portion of the training.
After a check of the vessel and its features, the teams left the dock at the South Seas Island Resort and proceeded out into the Pine Island Sound for the skills evaluation. Members of the district took turns operating the boat and performed maneuvers, such as safely transitioning from slow to high speed, minimum control speed, pivot turns, holding the vessel in a constant position with both the stern and bow into the wind, constant radius turns, and high speed stops. Additionally, they navigated the vessel through a slalom course, in which the operator zigzags between obstacles.
While some on the fire crew had previous experience operating a boat, all of the participants gained some additional knowledge, according to the America’s Boating Club of Sanibel-Captiva. However, those with little or no prior experience on the water found the training to be particularly rewarding.
“They were able to show our operators some efficient boat operation skills, and I think their guys probably learned a few things too on how to handle a boat of that caliber,” Pawul said. “It’s a little different than your everyday pleasure boat.”
SERAT is a sanctioned arm of the America’s Boating Club of Sanibel-Captiva, with the United States Power Squadron. Its mission is to provide volunteer assistance to agencies in on-water emergencies.
At the January meeting for the fire district’s commission, Pawul reported that the next step is for personnel to undergo training with the boat manufacturer, followed by the U.S. Coast Guard.