Municipal Divers? Not here....

[k ellis]

Wilddiver its all about like you said red tape and crime scene. They look at it like how the body was found such as clothed, chained down, where was the boat if it sank in relation to the body so on and so forth. Though it may be a simple drowning there is always the possibility of foul play.

On a side note. Thanks for the closure you helped give to the family. You may never know how a group of divers just doing what they love to do changed a families lives forever by simply knowing the truth.

 

[tbone5587]

Wilddiver, again, thanks for the closure you provided. I have 2 things to add:

1. We have a drowning on our lake that occured 9 years ago. The family has claimed we have not done enough to find him, and have secured many, many "outsourced" divers, as well as side-scans, rov's, search dogs, etc. They have all come up empty handed as well. Just because the victim has not been found, does not mean they are not doing the job properly.

2. Most, if not all dive teams accept volunteers. Volunteers usually excel in this "job" because they dive because they want to, not because they have to, or are getting paid to do so. That's not to say that most members don't want to dive or train. Contact this team and see if you can volunteer on it, and make it better, instead of sitting back making them look bad.

my 2 cents

 

[Wilddiver]

Tbone- This is one Dive team that does not accept Volunteers. And I am not trying to make them look bad, I was just trying to make a point that there are resources out there that the Sheriffs will not look at.

 

[tbone5587]

Wild,

Just realized you are another Michigander. I am not about to doubt anything you say. I've been there. Back when I had my own dive shop, I offered my services, along with many able bodied divers, to the local sheriff dept. free of charge. They repeatedly declined, stating that if they need divers, they will just call in the State Police. One of my employees ended up working for thier marine patrol, and while on duty, had her cousin drown off of Frankfort pier. Needless to say, she spearheaded the drive for a dive team. Of course, with that tragedy fresh in everyones mind, the department was all for it.

Unfortunately, our team is ONLY volunteer, so we can only be a recovery team at this stage. My understanding is that we are the only all volunteer county dive team in Michigan. Hooray for budget cuts....

It's sad when teams are closed minded about the thought of volunteers. I understand the need for evidence preservation and such, but lost victims that arent recovered quickly can take it's toll on a community. ALL resources should be made available and used, within reason.