On 25 March 2007 two DLRG diving instructors, Benno Scharpenberg and Klaus Schneider, travelled to Hong Kong accompanied by the President of DLRG and ILS-Europe, Dr. Klaus Wilkens.
On 25 March 2007 two DLRG diving instructors, Benno Scharpenberg and Klaus Schneider, travelled to Hong Kong accompanied by the President of DLRG and ILS-Europe, Dr. Klaus Wilkens.
Their mission was to train eleven fellow lifesavers of the Hong Kong Life Saving Society (HKLSS) in operational rescue diving according to the standards of the International Life Saving Federation (ILS) in a one-week crossover training course.
This course, which was financed by the HKLSS, was a pilot project aimed at introducing operational rescue diving in Hong Kong and putting the lifeguards in a position to work independently in this field in the future.
The initial situation could not be better. Six participants were members of the divers’ team of the professional fire service of Hong Kong, which comprises 110 divers altogether; two of these were even diving officers who had finished a professional diving training of more than 55 weeks.
Four other participants were sports scuba diving instructors. The people of the professional fire service of Hong Kong dive more than 25 m deep with the help of surface-supplied hoses, using professional underwater tools and also a diving bell when diving more than 42 m deep.
Two of the fireboats, which should be the largest in the world, are provided with transportable two-chamber pressure chambers which are complemented by a stationary, shore-based 3-chamber pressure chamber.
When shown this impressive equipment used by the fire service divers, the DLRG President accepted to let himself set under pressure, even though only up to a simulated depth of 3 m. He has been one of the first rescue divers in Germany, examined 1964.
Lifeguards to support fire service divers
Although five divers’ emergency vehicles are distributed over the country, it nevertheless takes up to 20 minutes until the fire service divers arrive on the spot of an accident due to the traffic situation.
In order to bridge this time gap, it was now decided to put an emphasis on training other forces in operational rescue diving as well. In this regard, the responsible people predominantly thought of the lifeguards employed on the beaches.
These are usually trained by the HKLSS, but the lifeguards work exclusively on a commercial basis later on. They are hired by the respective private operators of the beaches accessible to the public.
In the future, these forces shall also be instructed in the basic principles of operational rescue diving within their training courses carried out by the HKLSS, so that in an emergency case they can use the valuable time until the arrival of the fire service divers by starting rescue diving independently.
Examinations with notable results
The theoretical training in operational rescue diving took place in the conference room of the HKLSS office as well as in the training and meeting room at the famous Repulse Bay. This beach also served as the location for exercises regarding the basic equipment and instruction in the various search patterns.
Two days were spent in the Chinese Sea with a dive boat. The practical part regarding the water conditions was not really a highlight, but there was quite good visibility compared to German circumstances.
The participants convinced by their excellent diving skills and familiarised themselves with the special requirements of rope guidance in rescue situations surprisingly quickly. The concluding theoretical examination was carried out by means of questionnaires that had been shortened to the part specific to operational rescue diving and translated into the English language.
Similar to the practical exercise, all participants also demonstrated in the theoretical examination that they had prepared themselves with notable energy and understood everything immediately.
The results were remarkable. After just one week, during a festive graduation dinner in the officers’ mess of the professional fire service, nine participants were given certificates as diving instructors, head of rescue diving operations or operational rescue divers according to the corresponding ILS qualification levels. Thus, the start up for operational rescue diving in the HKLSS had been a successful one.