Manatee County Government Administrative Center First Floor, Commission Chambers 9:00 a.m. - March 6, 2018 March 6, 2018 - Regular Meeting Agenda Item #10 Subject Marine Rescue Wins 2017 Florida Beach Patrol of the Year Briefings None Contact and/or Presenter Information Robert L. Smith, Director, Public Safety Action Requested Recognition of Marine Rescue, winner of the Florida 2017 Beach Patrol of the Year Enabling/Regulating Authority None Background Discussion Manatee County Marine Rescue has been awarded the 2017 Beach Patrol of the year, the most prestigious award given by the Florida Beach Patrol Chief's Association. This honor is bestowed only to the best agencies in the industry and places that agency in an elite class with respect to the service it provides to its citizens. The Florida Beach Patrol Chief's Association was organized in 1983 and is composed of all the division heads of Ocean Rescue agencies. This award was presented on March 2nd at the annual Florida State Surf Lifesaving awards banquet in Manatee County. County Attorney Review Not Reviewed (No apparent legal issues) Explanation of Other Reviewing Attorney N/A Instructions to Board Records None Cost and Funds Source Account Number and Name 0.00 Amount and Frequency of Recurring Costs
0.00 Manatee County Government Administrative Center First Floor, Commission Chambers 9:00 a.m. - March 6, 2018 Attachment: Manatee County Marine Rescue 2017.pdf
The Manatee County Marine Rescue Division 2017
M ission Statement : To provide our residents and tourists with professional lifeguard response and rescue on and off our county s beaches, along with the gulf and intracoastal waterways while administering quality on-scene ALS/BLS emergency medical care. The Division: The division's main objective is to watch over and respond to the needs of residents and the nearly 3 million visitors that enjoy our county's lifeguarded beaches and surrounding areas each year. This high influx of people to our beaches creates a wide variety of incidents inside the park's boundaries. Lifeguards effectively manage medical emergencies, traumatic injuries, environmental emergencies, near drowning's, marine accidents, lost children, and social disturbances. We also enforce the County's Park Ordinances on our beaches and adjacent waterways. The Marine Rescue Division began in the late 1950 s within the Parks and Recreation Department. During the early 1960 s the county opened a second public beach and the need to increase the number of lifeguards became evident. These lifeguards had no real "formal" training and relied solely on their own skills as swimmers and surfers. Only given the bare necessities which included a torpedo buoy and maybe a surfboard they were some of the last "old school" lifeguards. As the job changed so did the training requirements. Our County's lifeguards increased their training and tried to lead the profession in these changing times. In 1991 the division moved from Parks and Recreation to the Department of Public Safety. Our standards were elevated to incorporate Emergency Medical Technician, USCG Captains License, Code Enforcement Officer, Advance SCUBA, and Rescue Diver certifications. We are a certified licensed training provider (LTP) facility for the American Red Cross but congruently use the standards set forth by the United States Lifeguard Association. We provide all of the in-house training and certification that our lifeguards require. The Marine Rescue Division's elevated standards of training led to the advanced response capabilities that we now provide today. The division crossed a threshold when it started to be dispatched to emergency calls via the 911 system. This was made possible by our integration into Public Safety, EMT status, and being recognized as first responders capable of administering on scene BLS (Basic Life Support) care. The Emergency Communications Center (911 system) dispatches us to water and land borne emergencies along the 27 plus miles of coastline. The major importance of this advancement was that we became a part of the 911 system and not just a user of it. We were able to achieve FRS Special Risk Retirement in 2004 for all of our Lifeguard/EMT s with Manatee County buying back the previous worked years from 1999 to 2004. Our lifeguards play a crucial role in the event of a disaster in Manatee County. Lifeguards from our Division collaborate with Law Enforcement and Emergency Management when the barrier islands are evacuated. They aide in such things as traffic control, medical care, victim rescue, and patient transport. Lifeguards are some of the last emergency personnel to evacuate the island as a life-threatening storm approaches. Post-storm, the Division is involved in such activities as search and rescue, recovery operations, medical triage/care etc. The Division may assign lifeguards to EMS units that need their swimming abilities for victim recovery and rescue in affected areas within our county. Once the barrier islands are accessible, lifeguards from Marine Rescue will secure the beaches and assist local law enforcement in post-storm recovery duties. In 2016, Squad 4 was created as a quick response non-transport ALS (Advanced Life Support) unit which is stationed solely on the island and responds to 911 calls between the hours of 9:00am and 9:00pm. The personnel working on the unit are trained by Marine Rescue to perform water rescue and lifeguard functions. When not actively responding to 911 rescue calls the personnel function as lifeguards. This Collaboration between EMS and Marine Rescue has provided a unique service to the island community by expanding lifeguard coverage and rapid ALS response to those in need. This quick response resource has improved response times to residents and visitors in need as well as provided additional lifeguard coverage.
Hours of Operation Actively Lifeguard Manatee and Coquina beaches Our beaches are Lifeguarded 365 days a year Lifeguards currently work 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. during the winter months and 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. in the summer months from Memorial Day to Labor Day We operate a total of 8 lifeguard towers Pre-Employment Requirements 3 months of Lifeguarding experience 500 meter swim under 10 minutes ½ mile run under 3:30 minutes Active victim rescue from 100 yards offshore NCIC & FDLE Background Check Drug free work place Employment All full-time lifeguard EMT/Paramedics are part of the FRS special risk retirement 48 hour divisional lifeguard training course 51 hour Emergency Medical Response (EMR) course Written lifeguard test All-terrain Rider Course American Heart Association Professional Rescuer CPR Boating Safety Course Certification PRC Jet Ski training Course (Rescuer, Operator, Surf Operator) Swift water and Strong RIP" current rescue training Enrolled in EMT within 1 year of hire Dive certifications (Basic, Advanced, Rescue) Centrelearn CEU monthly training EVOC Training FEMA ICS Emergency Management Certifications (ICS-100,200,700,800,240,241,242,702,703,813) Public Safety Medical Direction Code Enforcement Officers training Daily physical training regiment Combined response with Manatee Sherriff s Office Marine Unit and USCG Fiscal year figures FY 2016-2017 Preventions 16,847 Ordinance Violations 86,412 Water Rescues 84 Beach Incidents 21,002 Medical Emergencies 3,075 Beach attendance estimate 2,675,000 Received 2 National Association of Counties (NACo) Public Safety Director Vanguard Squad 4 Paramedic of the year Annually Presented Chief s Choice AWARDS Lifeguard of the Year Annual Lifeguard Competition At the end of summer we have our in house lifeguard competition. The two lieutenants select teams that compete against each other for the title of the beach and bragging rights for the rest of the year. Annual lifeguard requalification - 500 meter swim in under 10 minutes, Timed 100 yard rescue Our Staff Equipment 16 total fulltime Lifeguards positions, of these: 2 Personal Rescue Crafts w/ Extractor Rescue sleds 1 Chief Paramedic ALS Marine Rescue unit 2 Lieutenants 2 BLS water rescue trucks 9 state certified EMTs 8 all-terrain fully equipped rescue vehicles 2 state certified Paramedics 19 Carolina Skiff rescue vessel 5 American Red Cross EMRs 2 Strike Guard lightning detection systems 2 part-time Lifeguard/EMTs 16 M/A-COM two-way radios 7 certified Rescue Divers 11 oxygen/airway kits 4 Public Safety Divers/ Surface supplied air 11 BLS rescue kits 1 certified Dive Master 11 AED s 4 United States Coast Guard Captains
An Average Year Nearly 3 million visitors annually attend our county beaches. Lifeguards enforce and perform on an Average: 200 incidents (lost children, Boating accidents, Domestic issues) 150 Major Medical Emergencies (Cardiac, Heat Exhaustion, Stingray and Jellyfish stings) 80 Water Rescues ( RIP, Drowning) 3,900 Pier and jetty related incidents 1,100 Water craft related incidents 2,800 Swimmer assists (poor swimmers) 4,000 No Swim Zone (Longboat Pass, South End) 13,200 Public assistance interactions (what, where, why and how) 40,000 patrons assisted through Preventions, Swimmer Assists and Interventions Pre and Post Tropical Storm Capabilities Secure County Operated Parks County Code Enforcement Officers Assistance to Law Enforcement Assistance to Coast Guard when needed Respond to 911 calls Water Rescue Search and Rescue Assist with Evacuation Post Storm Recovery Throughout the year, Marine Rescue conducts many different educational programs specifically relating to Beach and Water Safety, Rip Currents, Marine life and Hazardous Weather Conditions the following are just a few: PUBLIC SAFETY EDUCATION Chamber of Commerce Project Teach Local elementary, middle and high school outreach and awareness County Safety Fest Public outreach April Pools Day education BOCC recognizes Annual Beach Safety Proclamation Manatee Technical College EMT course introduction to water rescue training portion Local MGTV utilized to create and air public safety announcements Social media Twitter announcements MOTE Marine Laboratory daily beach conditions reporting system visitbeaches.org WeatherBug weather station host site The Marine Rescue Division is looking to the future with the expansion of services to adjacent beaches, adding three lifeguard towers and the personnel to work them. We stay up-to-date on the latest rescue techniques and take an active role in Florida Beach Patrol Chiefs Association working to better the profession of lifeguarding across the State of Florida. We stay true to our motto When you are at your worst, we are at our BEST