Members of the Miami County Water Rescue Team prepare to get in a new inflatable boat beneath Sixth Street bridge earlier this year. (Submitted photo)
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Budget and boat keep rescue team afloat
Volunteers train with new equipment to be prepared for another flood like 2007
By Brian McCauley, bmccauley@miconews.com
One year after the July flooding that devastated Osawatomie, members of the Miami County Water Rescue Team continue to train themselves in case the unthinkable were to happen again — and they’re more prepared than ever before.
When the floodwaters started to overtake Osawatomie last summer, the seven members on the water rescue team started to get a bit nervous about the situation in front of them.
“We knew we had a job to do, but everyone was apprehensive,” said Capt. Brian Love of the Osawatomie Volunteer Fire Department and Paola building and inspection office. “We’re much more comfortable now, knowing that we can do the same rescues much easier and much safer.”
That peace of mind comes in the form of a new inflatable Zodiac boat, which the team has been getting used to during the past couple months. During the flood last summer, the team was using a flat-bottom aluminum boat that Love said provided more than a few problems in the swift currents of the swollen Marais des Cygnes River and Pottawatomie Creek.
The team had to make do with that boat and a similar one from the Kansas Fish and Game department to help during the flood. Love remembers helping a stranded family and rescuing three boaters who had ventured out into the raging Pottawatomie Creek shortly after the flood.
The tasks were daunting for the volunteers on the team, which didn’t even have a set budget. The rescues, though, brought attention to the team and its need in the community.
Shortly after the flood, Bill McPheeters of Paola donated another aluminum boat and a trailer to carry it on. Former Kansas City Royals pitcher Kevin Appier and his wife, Laurie, also donated a small Zodiac inflatable boat to the team that will primarily be used for ice rescues. The old flat-bottom boat likely will be donated to the city of La Cygne, Love said.
But the team’s main goal was to obtain a full-size Zodiac inflatable boat, and supporters got right to work on the fund-raising. Coin buckets were set up across town, and a raffle was held during the annual Harvest Festival, which was held on Paola’s Park Square.
Love said the volunteers raised about $4,000, most of which was spent modifying the donated trailer so that it could hold both the donated aluminum boat, which is used for lake rescues, and the new Zodiac inflatable boat once they got it. Hydraulic lifts were installed for easy access to the heavy boats.
With the team still needing money for the $15,400 boat, the city of Osawatomie and Miami County Rural Fire District No. 1 stepped in. Osawatomie pitched in $6,000, and the fire district covered the rest, Love said. The fire district also has given the team an operating budget of $2,000 this year, followed by $4,000 a year after that.
The new Zodiac got its first test when the team was called to assist the Osawatomie Police Department search for evidence in a murder case earlier this year. Love said the team also meets at least once a month to train using the new boat.
During a recent training exercise, Love experimented with the new boat in swift waters. The results were more than impressive.
“I took it to the bottom of the dam, and it can idle against strong currents,” Love said. “That thing is amazing.”
The water rescue team is made up of members of Osawatomie’s Volunteer Fire Department. The seven current members are Ted Bartlett, DuWayne Tewes, Love, Brian Mersman, Jarrod Shipley, Clifford Browning and David “Barney” Gibbs.
Love said three other firefighters currently are going through the training process to become members of the water rescue team. The new members would be a welcome addition to a team that doesn’t want to ever be stretched thin like it was last summer.
“We hope it never happens again, but I think we have a responsibility to prepare for it in the event it does,” Love said.
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When the floodwaters started to overtake Osawatomie last summer, the seven members on the water rescue team started to get a bit nervous about the situation in front of them.
“We knew we had a job to do, but everyone was apprehensive,” said Capt. Brian Love of the Osawatomie Volunteer Fire Department and Paola building and inspection office. “We’re much more comfortable now, knowing that we can do the same rescues much easier and much safer.”
That peace of mind comes in the form of a new inflatable Zodiac boat, which the team has been getting used to during the past couple months. During the flood last summer, the team was using a flat-bottom aluminum boat that Love said provided more than a few problems in the swift currents of the swollen Marais des Cygnes River and Pottawatomie Creek.
The team had to make do with that boat and a similar one from the Kansas Fish and Game department to help during the flood. Love remembers helping a stranded family and rescuing three boaters who had ventured out into the raging Pottawatomie Creek shortly after the flood.
The tasks were daunting for the volunteers on the team, which didn’t even have a set budget. The rescues, though, brought attention to the team and its need in the community.
Shortly after the flood, Bill McPheeters of Paola donated another aluminum boat and a trailer to carry it on. Former Kansas City Royals pitcher Kevin Appier and his wife, Laurie, also donated a small Zodiac inflatable boat to the team that will primarily be used for ice rescues. The old flat-bottom boat likely will be donated to the city of La Cygne, Love said.
But the team’s main goal was to obtain a full-size Zodiac inflatable boat, and supporters got right to work on the fund-raising. Coin buckets were set up across town, and a raffle was held during the annual Harvest Festival, which was held on Paola’s Park Square.
Love said the volunteers raised about $4,000, most of which was spent modifying the donated trailer so that it could hold both the donated aluminum boat, which is used for lake rescues, and the new Zodiac inflatable boat once they got it. Hydraulic lifts were installed for easy access to the heavy boats.
With the team still needing money for the $15,400 boat, the city of Osawatomie and Miami County Rural Fire District No. 1 stepped in. Osawatomie pitched in $6,000, and the fire district covered the rest, Love said. The fire district also has given the team an operating budget of $2,000 this year, followed by $4,000 a year after that.
The new Zodiac got its first test when the team was called to assist the Osawatomie Police Department search for evidence in a murder case earlier this year. Love said the team also meets at least once a month to train using the new boat.
During a recent training exercise, Love experimented with the new boat in swift waters. The results were more than impressive.
“I took it to the bottom of the dam, and it can idle against strong currents,” Love said. “That thing is amazing.”
The water rescue team is made up of members of Osawatomie’s Volunteer Fire Department. The seven current members are Ted Bartlett, DuWayne Tewes, Love, Brian Mersman, Jarrod Shipley, Clifford Browning and David “Barney” Gibbs.
Love said three other firefighters currently are going through the training process to become members of the water rescue team. The new members would be a welcome addition to a team that doesn’t want to ever be stretched thin like it was last summer.
“We hope it never happens again, but I think we have a responsibility to prepare for it in the event it does,” Love said.