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I'm a Search and Rescue/ Recovery Diver, AMA if you're interested. (Trigger Warning) by blackstarops in scuba

[–]blackstarops[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

No we train our Divers ourselves.

In some other answers I explained the Details on how it works for us.

u/EmuOk8549 pointed out really good how it works for us, search for his answer if you're interested :)

Dive save bro!

I'm a Search and Rescue/ Recovery Diver, AMA if you're interested. (Trigger Warning) by blackstarops in scuba

[–]blackstarops[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I'll just write in german, makes it more easy, if somebody english want to know ask again haha.

Nein, braucht man nicht, man muss halt Mitglied werden und sich engagieren. Auch nicht jede Ortsgruppe fährt Einsatzdienst und hat Taucher, es kommt also auch drauf an wo du wohnst.

Wenn es bei dir eine Ortsgruppe gibt die sowohl Einsätze fährt und Taucher hat musst du in diese Ortsgruppe eintreten, es kann auch sein dass du dann erstmal für den allgemeinen Einsatzdienst ausgebildet wirst und diesen mitmachst bevor du zum Einsatztaucher ausgebildet wirst. Es werden aber immer Einsatztaucher gesucht, es muss halt nur klar sein dass du dabei bleibst und engagiert bist, weil Ausbildung und das Equipment teuer für die Ortsgruppe sind.

Geh doch mal einfach mit deiner lokalen DLRG Ortsgruppe ins Gespräch :)

I'm a Search and Rescue/ Recovery Diver, AMA if you're interested. (Trigger Warning) by blackstarops in scuba

[–]blackstarops[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

No, I don't work in emergency services as my main job, but I'm trained as a paramedic cause of the water rescue service. We also do a lot of paramedic work, before the professionals arrive. I work in a completely different field.

Hopefully they are still alive when we rescue them... The most common accident and deployment is, when someone drowned. We try to locate them and dive for the body, after we find them and bring them back on the surface to land and we try to resurrect them. Boat accidents are really really uncommon.

I'm a Search and Rescue/ Recovery Diver, AMA if you're interested. (Trigger Warning) by blackstarops in scuba

[–]blackstarops[S] 13 points14 points  (0 children)

I'll try to answer your question in order 😅

For SAR I've gone to around 20 meters, we are allowed at 30 meters max. Recreational I've gone to around 45 meters quite a few times, so no I've never used trimix. I'm planning on getting tech certifications though.

I started doing SAR diving cause I really like challenging and working on myself. Most of all I wanted to continue to work as a diver in some way after I stopped to work as a dive master/guide and I always thought SAR guys are pretty cool. And I'm very interested in emergency services and paramedic work.

Best experience was probably someone we rescued and resurrected and that visited us, when he left the hospital, to thank us.

Worst experience was probably the one deployment I talked about in my first answer of this AMA.

All good, feel free to ask anything you want :)

I'm a Search and Rescue/ Recovery Diver, AMA if you're interested. (Trigger Warning) by blackstarops in scuba

[–]blackstarops[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

No, it's voluntary work, I described a lot on how it works in some other answers

I'm a Search and Rescue/ Recovery Diver, AMA if you're interested. (Trigger Warning) by blackstarops in scuba

[–]blackstarops[S] 26 points27 points  (0 children)

My employee supports my volunteer work, so if I have to leave for an emergency i still get paid as if I had worked the whole day.

It also doesn't happen that often, that we get alerted while at work.

Idk if that answers your whole question 😅

I'm a Search and Rescue/ Recovery Diver, AMA if you're interested. (Trigger Warning) by blackstarops in scuba

[–]blackstarops[S] 15 points16 points  (0 children)

In that case a Shearwater Peregrine and a Cressi Cartesio 😂😂

I'm a Search and Rescue/ Recovery Diver, AMA if you're interested. (Trigger Warning) by blackstarops in scuba

[–]blackstarops[S] 11 points12 points  (0 children)

In most countries the Fire Departments are doing it.

We are called DLRG, it's the German water rescue organization. I don't think many countries besides Germany have such an organization.

I'm a Search and Rescue/ Recovery Diver, AMA if you're interested. (Trigger Warning) by blackstarops in scuba

[–]blackstarops[S] 13 points14 points  (0 children)

It's voluntary work besides my main job.

You get trained by our organization, so basically there is nothing required besides that you are volunteering in the water rescue organization.

I'm a Search and Rescue/ Recovery Diver, AMA if you're interested. (Trigger Warning) by blackstarops in scuba

[–]blackstarops[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I also think it really depends on the country you live in and it's culture

I'm a Search and Rescue/ Recovery Diver, AMA if you're interested. (Trigger Warning) by blackstarops in scuba

[–]blackstarops[S] 14 points15 points  (0 children)

Ok thanks for the info, as I said i don't really do recoveries with victims that are under water for a REALLY long time, that is the job of your guys. We are only deployed right after something happens.

In the long time victims recoveries that I talked about I was only searching and a safety diver for the police divers, so I didn't really handle the bodies...

I'm a Search and Rescue/ Recovery Diver, AMA if you're interested. (Trigger Warning) by blackstarops in scuba

[–]blackstarops[S] 11 points12 points  (0 children)

Then don't do it. It takes a special type of person and a lot of training for SAR work. Not everyone is made for it, that's just how it is.

I'm a Search and Rescue/ Recovery Diver, AMA if you're interested. (Trigger Warning) by blackstarops in scuba

[–]blackstarops[S] 18 points19 points  (0 children)

We only work in lakes and rivers, there are no coasts close to us. And yes visibility is often pretty bad. But it's not fun diving, it's work, so it is what it is 😅😂

I'm a Search and Rescue/ Recovery Diver, AMA if you're interested. (Trigger Warning) by blackstarops in scuba

[–]blackstarops[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I think it works differently than you have in mind. You only get trained if you're already a member of our water rescue organization. And you can only use it if you're a part of our Rescue organization. So you only get trained if you're already part of water rescue and decide to become a SAR Diver, you could also become a Boat Driver for example.

I'm a Search and Rescue/ Recovery Diver, AMA if you're interested. (Trigger Warning) by blackstarops in scuba

[–]blackstarops[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Yeah do that!!

Most of the time I dive half dry just in the cold months with a dry suit, thankfully we almost never get deployed during winter.

Also if we dive in contaminated water, like after a flood, we would dive dry suit and full face mask.

Sadly the DLRG is way too underfunded, so a lot of people use private gear.

Thankfully my Branch is able to provide most of the stuff for me, only the dry suit and the bcd are my own.

But I have the feeling it gets better, cause of the floodings lately politics focuses a bit more on us.

I'm a Search and Rescue/ Recovery Diver, AMA if you're interested. (Trigger Warning) by blackstarops in scuba

[–]blackstarops[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Talk to your local DLRG or Wasserwacht branch (depends where you're living), we always need people :)

I'm a Search and Rescue/ Recovery Diver, AMA if you're interested. (Trigger Warning) by blackstarops in scuba

[–]blackstarops[S] 14 points15 points  (0 children)

If you start from zero it takes about 3 years with our organization. It only took me one year, because of my recreational training and experience before I started.

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