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Crime & Safety

Port Jeff Ambulance Corps Participates in Marine Rescue Drill

The Coast Guard joined 11 local emergency response agencies to practice responding to a boat in distress off of Cedar Beach in Mount Sinai.

The Port Jefferson Volunteer Ambulance Corps joined up with local fire departments and the Coast Guard to participate in a marine rescue drill Saturday afternoon at Cedar Beach in Mt. Sinai designed to improve communication among rescuers and strengthen partnerships.

First responders lined the shore at 9 a.m. from 10 local fire departments—Sound Beach, Setauket, St. James, Northport, Nesconset, Ridge, Rocky Point, Miller Place, Mt. Sinai, Wading River—and the Port Jefferson Volunteer Ambulance Corps.

Under command of the Coast Guard in a Suffolk County Command Post vehicle the rescue scenario entailed a boat in distress 1/2 mile north of Mount Sinai Harbor.

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According to the scenerio, five persons were reported on board and needed assistance. The fire departments tasks were to coordinate rescue efforts utilizing their resources—emergency medical services, fire boats, ambulances, all terrain vehicles, and other apparatuses to aid in the search.

"It was a good amount of partners and it’s nice to kind of knock the rust off for the spring time and kind of put the screw to the water," said Ralph Kugel, the officer in charge of the Coast Guard Station located in New Haven, CT that aided in the drill.

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Once the mock victims were rescued, they were brought to shore where triage commanders noted the injuries and had Emergency Medical Technicians simulate a transport to area hospitals.

"It worked out pretty well we had a lot of cooperation with everybody in the command van," said Port Jefferson Volunteer Ambulance First Assistant Chief Kathleen Johnson, commander of the medical team. "We had a lot of personnel on the beach."

One aspect of the drill she noted needed work was communication between the crews.   

According to Mt. Sinai Fire Department Ex-Chief and Long Island North Shore Marine Search and Rescue Commander James Trappen, dive teams from Nesconset and Mt. Sinai Fire Departments were working in the 51 degree water as a side drill.

“We found all five victims over an eight mile area in about an hour, hour and a half,” said Trappen.    

Miller Place Fire Department Third Assistant Chief Rich Schlude said that his department will participate in future marine rescue drills.

“It was a great opportunity for all of the departments to get together with the Coast Guard to practice our unified response,” he said.

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