Fire_Services_1966-1967 — Page 14

SKIN DIVING SERVICE

38. Fire Service divers attended 28 calls during the year and recovered 27 bodies. Having regard to the speed with which persons are overcome by immersion and the time factor from receipt of call to attendance at an incident, it must be accepted that the continuance of this service can only be justified as a body recovery unit and not as a true rescue unit.

AMBULANCE SERVICE

39. The Ambulance Service was reconstituted during the year as a semi-autonomous division of the Department and arrangements are in hand for the appointment of an Ambulance Division Adviser who will be responsible to the Director for analysing and evaluating the Colony's ambulance requirements to meet the changing operational and social demands of the Colony and for advising on the reorganization and development of the Ambulance Division.

40. With the reconstitution of the ambulance echelons as a semi- autonomous division the manning of ambulances is now in the hands of personnel recruited and trained purely for these duties and whose career prospects are not influenced by their aptitude or experience in fire fighting disciplines. In consequence, considerably more concentrated training has been given to them in ambulance duties than was hereto- fore possible.

41. Further progress was made in the installation of V.H.F. radios in all ambulances and at the close of the year there were 25 ambulances fitted with radio units. The provision of radio has greatly extended the Ambulance Division capability, and there are seldom any occasions when an ambulance is not immediately available nowadays or cannot be promptly contacted for despatch to emergency cases.

AIRPORT CONTINGENT

42. The Airport Contingent was alerted during the year on 153 declared aircraft emergencies involving 5,268 passengers. Other inci- dents totalled 1,265, which together with the 153 aircraft emergencies represents an increase of 449 calls, or 55.2% against the previous year.

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