rescuevoices.com

about

Stories by Jim Byers

Rope Swing Recovery

by James Byers
Sargeant, El Dorado County Sheriff's Marine Unit

    Labor Day weekend was a busy one in the Tahoe Basin and on all of the waterways throughout the county, with more tourists than you can shake a stick at, all trying to get that last summer weekend in.

    Unfortunately, the weekend ended on a tragic note, when late Sunday
afternoon, a person using a rope swing in the Rubicon Point area on
Lake Tahoe, hit the water wrong after falling 50 to 70 feet and never
came up.

    State Parks and El Dorado County Sheriff's Marine Unit, South
Lake Tahoe Police Department Marine Unit, and Coast Guard Station Lake Tahoe responded, but were unable to locate the subject during a hasty search as darkness fell.

    The State Parks Department was the investigating agency, and requested the El Dorado County Sheriff's Office Dive Team respond at first light the following morning, and attempt to locate the victim. Easier said than done, with
the depth in this area going from 35 feet, to the abyss (1200 feet), in
less than 100 yards from shoreline. Add in Labor Day boating traffic
and you can imagine how large a task this was going to be.

    Interagency cooperation to the rescue! Come first light, the dive
operation had a State Parks Boat, Coast Guard Station Lake Tahoe, El
Dorado Sheriff's Marine Unit, and South Lake Tahoe Police Department Marine Unit assisting with scene security, making for a safe diving area of
operation.

    The victim was located on a ledge just before the abyss and recovered
without incident.

    A very big THANK YOU to Coast Guard Station Lake Tahoe, State Parks,
South Lake Tahoe PD Marine Unit, and of course, the El Dorado County
Sheriff's Marine Unit for their assistance in making this difficult dive
operation that much safer, and for showing how interagency cooperation
can make a tough job much easier!

About Jim Byers

e-mail Jim Byers