Law enforcement agencies perform underwater searches.
The
security of many countries is being threatened from sources
within and outside of their borders. For the lawman, having the
right tools in his crime fighting arsenal is often critical to
an operation’s success. Today, a new set of high tech tools
help law enforcement agents perform underwater searches safer,
and more effectively, than ever before. In their investigative
operations police routinely search for weapons used in the
commission of crimes, hunt for drowning victims, and survey
underwater structures looking for smuggled goods or explosives.
For the police diver, one of his most effective weapons is the
underwater metal detector. Used in evidence recovery operations,
these detectors have been directly responsible for putting many
criminals behind bars. In one recent case Connecticut State
Police divers, assisting the Pennsylvania State Police, searched
for a handgun used in a homicide. The suspect had thrown the gun
from a bridge just outside of Pittsburgh. "Criminals often
dispose of their weapons in lakes and rivers thinking
they will never be found", says Sgt. Justin Kelly of the CT
dive team. "Using our Pulse 8X detector, we actually
recovered four handguns that day, including the one we were
searching for."
Another popular tool with police departments, sheriffs offices, and dive rescue groups is side scan sonar. Often used to locate drowning victims, these high tech sonars allow large areas to be searched quickly. Side scans "remove the water" and produce a picture of what’s on the river, lake, or ocean bottom. These systems can eliminate the need to dive in difficult or dangerous conditions. Terry Tsui of the Hong Kong fire department says of their recently purchased Fisher side scan, "The sonar has been indispensable in our searches for drowning victims in the low visibility, fast moving waters around the island." In addition to body searches, side scans are also very useful in viewing underwater structures and searching for explosives, like mines, that may be anchored to the bottom. The FBI dive team used their Fisher side scan to survey an Atlanta lake where Olympic events were held.
Underwater cameras are also in wide use by law enforcement dive teams and county rescue squads. A camera can pre-inspect an underwater site before divers are deployed. The team then knows exactly what they’re getting into. In many cases, the underwater camera can perform much of the site survey, with divers being deployed only when the lost object has been found and is ready to be recovered. The Philadelphia Police Marine Unit’s Lt. George Ondrejka reports, "Our Fisher SeaLion has really reduced the amount of time our divers spend in the water. We recently had to search for a handgun and the majority of the search was conducted with the ROV." Sgt. Wayne Talbot of the Missouri State Water Patrol says, "Our Fisher TOV-1 towed video system makes it easy to search areas with low visibility and deeper depths, which helps minimize the risk to our divers. The camera can stay down all day long and we don’t have to worry about decompression or running out of air. The TOV-1 has been extremely helpful in locating drowning victims."
For more information on all of Fishers high tech underwater search systems contact Christopher Combs at JW Fishers Mfg. Inc., 1953 County St., East Taunton, MA 02718, USA. Phone: (800) 822-4744 or (508) 822-7330. Fax: (508) 880-8949. E-mail to jwfishers@aol.com or check out the web site at www.jwfishers.com
