Cargo Business Techwire

Friday, September 5, 2014

Dive teams search L.A.-Long Beach port areas for bombs and bodies

The Port Dive Operations Group helps the U.S. Coast Guard protect the waterfront and adjacent waterways, helping to maintain the flow of trade at the Ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles by searching underwater for everything from bombs to bodies.

The PDOG brings together the FBI, Long Beach police and fire, Los Angeles Port Police, Los Angeles police, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, and other agencies to train and hone their skills to handle disasters too big for one agency.

Technology has changed the way public safety dive teams do their jobs, from toxin-shielding suits that keep them safe to the equipment that could save lives. An officer above water monitors the divers, using a computer tablet that tracks the whereabouts and vital signs of up to six divers as they search. The tablet also monitors the environment around the divers, including water temperature and depth.

In addition to practicing every other week with grant-funded equipment like rebreathers and dive sleds that can be preprogrammed to take them to their destination, the 12 divers use a nearby water tank to get a feel for working in an enclosed area. Another tool includes thick yellow rubber lift bags that can bring vehicles, aircraft and boat wreckage up from the depths.

"The ports are a target," said Long Beach police Lt. Eric Ledesma. "Nothing has happened, but we try to stay proactive."

For more of the Los Angeles Daily News story: dailynews.com

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