Swift Water Rescue Team trains at Lake Ming

With many families in Bakersfield out on the water on Labor Day, the Swift Water Rescue Team for the Bakersfield Fire Department was quite busy.

Transcript

00:00 Well, topping our news in this half hour, many families in Bakersfield spent the

00:03 Labor Day weekend on the water and the Swift Water Rescue team with City Fire

00:07 was quite busy. Yeah, 23 abc's Steve Verhan shows us that while on patrol

00:14 they use their time on the water to better their response times for when it

00:18 counts.

00:19 When it's time to save a life or prevent danger in Lake Ming

00:29 Bakersfield Fire Captain Ben Hengler says an increase in staff allows for

00:33 Swift Water Rescue teams to patrol various areas. You want me to tell you

00:38 or they're not just cruising around. We always take the opportunity to train if

00:43 we can. Um, so while we're out here patrolling, we'll perform maneuvers that

00:48 that we would, you know, utilize in a rescue situation. Engler says this is a

00:53 unique year because of the abundance of rain that came that has resulted in

00:57 various water levels providing a different dynamic when it comes to

01:00 rescues. The biggest thing is just being able to be adaptable, being dynamic in

01:06 terms of our responses and our equipment and how we use different equipment.

01:10 Being mentally prepared to be doing things on the fly and changing up

01:17 tactics quickly in an environment that that changes almost by the second. While

01:22 he didn't have an exact number yet for rescues this weekend, Hengler said they

01:26 did see some action on the water. We always hope that, you know, we don't

01:30 have to rescue anybody. That means everybody's been safe. But I like to say

01:34 that if there is an opportunity, I hope that I can be there to help.

01:37 That's bad news. No, you know, at the end of the day, it's just helping

01:43 somebody just as if you were to, you know, help someone on the side of the

01:47 road that was stranded. But it's very rewarding, fulfilling to be able to help

01:52 somebody in a time of need like that. Steve Vierhen, 23 ABC News, connecting you.

01:57 Thank you.