By Paul Fawcett, USCG

The U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) prides itself on being the nation’s premier maritime agency, and is perhaps best known for its search and rescue (SAR) operations. The USCG maintains many different types of SAR programs, one of which involves ice rescue. But this particular program would not be fully successful without the participation of firefighters and other public safety agencies. Why? USCG members change assignment approximately every 2–4 years, which makes retaining knowledge of local weather, geography and customs difficult. Local fire, police and EMS personnel often possess extensive knowledge of these important factors, which can be of tremendous value if shared. Conversely, the USCG often has access to specialized equipment, including ice rescue boats, helicopters and ships that can team up with local agencies to affect rescues. Both the USCG and the fire service understand interagency cooperation is essential when it comes to saving lives.

A Little History
The USCG regularly conducts reviews of marine-related fatalities to reevaluate placements of its assets and asset types. In 2000, one of these reviews revealed that fatalities were occurring on the frozen Great Lakes during the winter; however, the USCG was not properly trained or equipped and therefore could not adequately perform ice rescues to prevent these fatalities. In many remote areas, local emergency services were also not prepared, usually due to lack of funding. To correct this problem, the USCG implemented its ice rescue program.

As the program took shape, local USCG units communicated their new capabilities to local first responders during emergency planning meetings. These discussions prompted joint training and exercise evolutions to better coordinate the complex nature of ice rescue. Experience conducting actual rescues reinforced the need for continued joint training.

Photo Courtesy USCG USCG Ice Rescue Tools Various USCG stations are designated as being ice rescue capable and are equipped with specialized equipment for that purpose. Here’s a list of just some of the tools used during ice rescue. • Helicopters: The primary tool for USCG ice rescue is the helicopter. Agencies in need of USCG air support for ice rescue or other rescue evolutions can contact the nearest USCG air station, sector or district office. USCG air crews include a rescue swimmer trained as an EMT. • Ice skiffs: Most ice rescue stations own an ice skiff, usually a 16'–18' aluminum hulled boat, equipped with a small outboard motor. This can be pushed across the ice and driven across open areas of water to reach victims. The skiff is kept in a trailer behind the ice rescue truck, and although it’s effective, it’s difficult to operate during longer rescues. • Airboats (see photo): Recently, the Great Lakes USCG units tested airboats for use in ice rescue. Similar to everglade boats, these aluminum hulled, flat-bottom, 18'–20' boats feature a massive enclosed fan mounted on the stern. The ice configuration differs from the everglade boats because it comes with an enclosed cabin and four seats. These boats are ideal for ice rescue because they can easily transit ice, water and land. They are also extremely helpful during urban SAR in a flooded environment. • Fortuna boats: Many Coast Guard units are transitioning to inflatable “fortuna” boats, because they can be deflated and stored on the rescue truck. They also inflate rapidly, weigh less than skiffs and can be dragged more easily across the ice. Further, fortuna boats can be equipped with a metal insert, allowing for the installation of an outboard motor. • PPE: Standard USCG ice rescue PPE includes an MSD900 dry suit, polypropylene undergarments, neoprene hoods, 7-mm neoprene gloves and kayak helmets equipped with climber’s lights for night rescue. Searching for the right footwear for ice rescue, the USCG modified existing off-the-shelf soccer cleats by replacing the standard cleats with wing nuts. This creates an affordable, lightweight ice shoe that gives the rescuer good traction. Other PPE includes ice awls attached to their MSD900 by a line and a rigger’s harness worn on the torso, which facilitates attachment of a tag line at the back or securing equipment to a front D-ring.

Training for the Program
Based mainly at units in the Great Lakes area, the USCG ice rescue program focuses on near-shore rescue; however, before a USCG member or unit can participate in the program, they must first receive specialty training. To standardize this process, the USCG developed the Ice Capabilities Center of Excellence (ICCE), which is based at the USCG station in Saginaw, Mich., and offers several classes a year, such as Basic Ice Rescue, Train the Trainer and Ice Boat Operator courses, just to name a few.

To provide students with practical training opportunities, the ICCE owns multiple sets of ice-rescue personal protective equipment (PPE) and gear, which each student uses during a one-week training evolution. Attendance at the ICCE is limited to USCG members at this time, but fire departments can request to borrow instructors for short-term ice rescue training from local USCG units that perform ice rescue ops.

Outside the ICCE, USCG units often take part in joint training with local fire departments and other agencies. When training together, agencies focus on practical ice rescue skills, such as direct victim rescue and boat operations. Joint training also enables each agency to become familiar with the other’s equipment and helps solve communications and command issues before an actual ice rescue.

In instances where state or local agencies don’t have expertise in the ice rescue environment, local USCG units often provide training. (USCG units have provided basic officer ice safety training for the Michigan Department of Natural Resources recruit training for several years.) Local emergency response agencies that wish to participate in joint training with the USCG should contact their local USCG station.

Preseason Preparation
Regular contact between USCG stations and local public safety agencies prior to the start of ice season is imperative to the success of any ice rescue. All agencies must be aware of each other’s capabilities and new equipment, as well as budget cuts or policy changes that may have reduced or changed their ability to respond. Many USCG units send a letter to their local counterparts at the beginning of the season outlining capabilities, to eliminate confusion.

The Officer in Charge (OIC) of the USCG station is responsible for training and coordinating rescue ops at the local level. When a new OIC arrives at a station, it is extremely important for them to meet with fire officers, sheriff’s deputies and local police officers early in their assignment. The OIC’s participation in emergency management planning committees ensures continued communication and coordination of all types of rescue and law enforcement issues, including ice rescue, and establishes important personal relationships.

Joint Ice Rescue
When an actual ice rescue event occurs, training and interagency coordination really pay off. During an incident, the USCG is mandated to use the incident command system (ICS), which enables quick, easy coordination when setting up a unified command structure and location. This is essential for the coordination of rescue efforts, ensuring the safety of all rescuers and maintaining accountability for all victims in a mass-rescue situation. Often, joint command is as simple as all responding agencies parking their vehicles together at a location as near as practicable to the rescue, and the senior members of each agency huddling together with their radios.

Once on scene, the senior agency members evaluate the situation and their resources. They then work together to determine whether the incident requires a boat rescue, a helicopter rescue or an on-ice response; in some cases, a combination of these resources is needed. Once all agencies have agreed on the incident’s needs, they plan the rescue together and deploy their resources.

The fire service’s role within the joint ice rescue environment is often parallel to that of the USCG, which contributes ice rescue teams, communications capabilities, helicopters, boats and cutters. Note: It’s crucial to the success of any large incident that several fire departments and other first responders deploy ice rescue teams because rescue personnel may quickly become overwhelmed. Local fire services may also have better knowledge of the area, as well as the rescue site’s characteristics and how to access it.

Local law enforcement provides scene security, a service the USCG can’t provide, while EMS response is coordinated between the USCG and local providers. Air medivac ops may be carried out by USCG helicopters that carry EMT-trained rescue swimmers. Note: The combined ice and open-water nature of ice rescue work may require the deployment of resources beyond the capabilities of some local response agencies.

One crucial resource used by both the USCG and the fire service: a helicopter, which can affect rescues when accessing the site is impossible by boat or land. Here, the USCG’s HH65 Dolphin helicopter performs hoist operations, as often used during ice rescues. Photo Courtesy USCG

Providing public information during these events is often a shared responsibility, with all agencies contributing a public information officer for joint statements. For lengthy events, a temporary joint information center (JIC) is set up to coordinate press conferences and issue joint press releases.

Coming Together
Each winter, the ninth USCG district, responsible for the Great Lakes region, hosts an Ice Rescue Symposium. This three-day event brings together USCG members as well as fire, police and EMS professionals from across the country to share ice rescue information.

The symposium includes presentations from public safety and USCG members, displays of equipment from vendors and hands-on testing of new equipment in an outdoor ice environment. The symposium provides an excellent opportunity for sharing of experiences and methods between the USCG and the public safety community and for establishing key contacts.

Two presentations stand out in my mind from the 2006 symposium. The first focused on one fire department from Detroit that participated in the joint ice rescue of several ice fishermen in Lake St. Clair in the Detroit river system. While performing the rescue, both rescuers and victims became stranded on a disintegrating floe after the rescuers’ hovercraft capsized. Helicopters and boats eventually had to be deployed to rescue those stranded, stressing the importance of proper PPE, joint operations and communications.

The second presentation was given by a physician specializing in cold-water immersion. He determined that some victims do not succumb to the effects of hypothermia and other cold-water problems as quickly as rescuers believed and that cold-water rescue should be approached with that in mind.

Lake Erie Ice Rescue Ice fishing is a popular pastime in western Lake Erie. The cold winter weather can create ice more than 8 inches thick; this provides fisherman the opportunity to drill holes well off shore looking for opportunity to catch perch or walleye. On Feb. 25, 2005, near Crane Creek State Park (Ohio), 30 ice fisherman ventured out onto the ice to fish. Some used snowmobiles and all-terrain vehicles to transport their gear while others used sleds. Once on scene, fishermen began to receive news from new arrivals that cracks were forming near the shore. Several tried to return to shore, only to find escape was completely cut off by an 8' gap that was quickly widening. Offshore winds had created a 10-mile floe, trapping all fishermen aboard, ultimately pushing them over a mile into the frigid waters of Lake Erie. The USCG station in Marblehead, Ohio, along with local fire departments, was immediately notified. The public safety agencies then gathered on shore near the floe, bringing ice skiffs and inflatable boats with them. The agencies decided to transit off shore and shuttle the fishermen to safety. While working the scene, rescuers had to contend with additional cracks forming near the edge of the floe, making it difficult to “beach” their boats to load victims. Local fire departments launched small boats and, with the help of the USCG, created a shuttle service. Rescue crews were equipped with various types of ice rescue survival suits and flotation gear, but the victims were wearing only heavy hunting clothes. This created a risk of exposure and drowning should any of the victims slip into the water while boarding the boat or should the boat capsize in transit. This risk was partially solved by securing a line to the center of the floe and having victims hold it for safety while transiting to and boarding the rescue boats. As helicopters were dispatched, the rescue was accomplished by the local USCG and public safety entities. The entire operation took more than two hours to rescue 30 individuals. This rescue is an excellent example of interagency cooperation. The size of this incident made it too large for any one agency to handle alone. Prior mutual knowledge of each agency’s capabilities and equipment meant that valuable time was not wasted during the actual event.

Conclusion
Cooperation between the USCG and local public safety agencies is key to the success of any ice rescue mission. Each agency brings specific skills and capabilities to the mission, be it local knowledge,
specialized equipment or mission expertise. Prior knowledge of each agency’s capabilities, command and control, and staffing is essential to ensuring cooperative ice rescue ops. Regular joint training exercises, emergency planning meetings and personal contacts are excellent ways to develop the necessary rapport and comfort level between agencies, and to ensure that the end result—saving someone’s life—is achieved.

Lieutenant Commander Paul Fawcett has served with the USCG for 10 years in a variety of roles and is currently assigned to USCG sector Detroit as Chief of Incident Management. His responsibilities include program oversight of search and rescue and marine environmental protection. Fawcett is the recipient of the 2003 Alex Haley Award for Excellence in Coast Guard Writing, as well as several military decorations. Fawcett has also authored more than 40 published works, including “Aquatic Facility Management” by Human Kinetics.