Dane Gibson
Northern News Services

NNSL (Mar 17/99) - Taking a pro-active approach isn't just good advice, in this case it may save lives.

NWT chief coroner Percy Kinney said he's not willing to stay quiet when it comes to Yellowknife's lack of underwater rescue capabilities.

"This is a disaster waiting to happen," Kinney said.

"My job is to prevent future deaths wherever possible and to bring dangerous practices to light -- so I'm going to keep pounding the table."

On Feb. 22, Kinney made public the fact that nobody in Yellowknife was willing to take responsibility for underwater rescue operations on local waterways. City councillor Bob Brooks said the information they had at the time led them to believe it was the RCMP's responsibility.

"Since then, we have received a letter from the RCMP stating underwater rescue does not fall within its jurisdiction," Brooks said.

The City of Yellowknife's public safety department is now preparing an underwater rescue plan that will address questions surrounding liability, manpower, cost to the city and how soon they can get a program up and running.

"There's no question there's a sense of urgency. We're working on all the options and are preparing a report that should be ready in a couple of weeks," Brooks said.

Last December, the Yellowknife Fire Department prepared a budget proposal asking for $25,000 for underwater rescue. It didn't get approved.

Brooks said he's recently done preliminary work on the subject himself which indicates costs could run higher than $200,000.

"If (our proposal) concludes we can do it for $20,000 or $30,000, then I don't see approval being a problem," he said.

"If it turns out we're talking about $200,000 or $300,000, then it becomes a budget issue that will take more time, a change in priorities and a lot more discussion."

Deputy fire chief Mike Lowing said their proposal was based on veteran underwater rescue programs like the one operated by the Calgary Fire Department.

He said 98 per cent of Yellowknife water rescues are within 10 to 15 metres of the shore and in about 4 metres of water, which is the profile they used when preparing the budget request.

"We're not talking about a Cadillac service, we're talking about a basic emergency rapid response system that's designed to be safe for the rescuers and can provide immediate assistance to people in an underwater emergency," Lowing said.

He added they are only looking at public safety diving standards, not recreational diving standards which is something very different.

"(Our proposal) includes equipment, a basic level of public safety dive training and a second advanced training component.

"It is very lean, specifically designed to get trained public safety divers in the water."

Stephen Sherburne is the assistant program co-ordinator for safety and public affairs at the Department of Transportation. He is also the NWT Small Boat Safety Awareness program co-ordinator.

He works closely with the fire department, RCMP and the chief coroner's office on water-related safety issues.

"Saving lives is what all of our agencies are concerned with," Sherburne said.

"What is needed is not only the ability to respond but a clear indication of who is responsible for that response. Once that's decided, getting the training and equipment should be relatively easy."

He said the approaching spring thaw means moving quickly on this is essential.

"Ice is very unpredictable. It could be a foot thick where you're standing and an inch thick 10 feet away," Sherburne said.

"A child can walk out on the ice almost twice as far as an adult. It's that further distance where you run into problems from a rescue perspective."

Kinney said he wants to see trained personnel ready for action as soon as possible.

"Spring is on the way. In a month or two our lakes and waterways will be open again," he said.

"Our window of opportunity to do something about this is shrinking. The city should be as worried as I am that rescue on the waterways in Yellowknife is in no-man's land."

Brooks said once their proposal is prepared, it will be brought before council for debate.