Global Special Services Company rescue diver reports of extreme sea conditions during the Search and Rescue rehearsal for the Webtel.mobi Intercontinental Challenge
One of the Rescue Divers who took part in today’s Webtel.mobi Intercontinental Challenge Search and Rescue rehearsal reported that the sea conditions in during the search and rescue rehearsal had been extreme.
The rehearsal saw the Webtel.mobi Challenger being lowered into the ocean by winch, after which two rescue divers jumped from the helicopter into the ocean and extracted him.
According to Garth Eloff, Operations Director of GCE Consultants who was the Rescue Team Leader for the exercise, “The extreme currents in the area, combined with very strong winds and swells of between four to six metres from top to trough combined to make a very dangerous situation, but we had to rehearse under actual conditions to be sure that we could carry out a marine extraction if required”.
The Search and Rescue Helicopter pilot was also reported as saying that the area is well known for being treacherous and extremely dangerous, with many people losing their lives in these waters every year.
Eloff, whose company GCE Consultants provides Search and Rescue, Specialized Security and Logistics assistance worldwide, said that although the conditions had been extremely dangerous, it was necessary to rehearse the rescue. “We have to be ready to work under these same conditions in an actual situation, so there is no alternative to a live rehearsal. Our planning and implementation ensured that although the circumstances were extremely dangerous, the participants themselves were not in danger”.
Details on GCE Consultants can be seen at:-
Details on the Webtel.mobi Intercontinental Challenge can be seen at:-
http://www.challenge.webtel.mobi/
The Webtel.mobi Intercontinental Challenge on 25 November 2009, will attempt the first Intercontinental crossing by jet-wing over the North Atlantic Ocean from Morocco (Africa) to Spain (Europe). It will be broadcast live over the internet at 14:00 GMT in an internet webcast at http://www.challenge.webtel.mobi/ on the Challenge Viewer page of the website.
