On February 2nd, 2017, the state department Cal-OES issued a state of emergency for the imminent failure of the Lake Oroville Dam, which was supposed to occur within an hour of the announcement. The Dive Team was activated and dropped everything to respond to this incident. Upon arrival, few resources were available and divers spent the next few days sleeping in their vehicles and surviving on food and drinks they brought with them. Divers were directed to standby with their rescue boats as first response rescue teams in the event the emergency spillway collapsed. As it was, nearly 188,000 people were evacuated from the City of Oroville and the emergency spillway was able to hold until the rain subsided.
In the spring, the Dive team responded to the recovery of a female reported missing in the South Lake Tahoe area. During the call, EDSO Dive team was tasked with searching the Upper Truckee River, which was full of recent snow melt, and was able to locate the victim and remove her body from the water. South Lake Tahoe Police Department was then able to continue their investigation into the circumstances of this unfortunate event.
Again in the spring, faced with cold and fast
moving waters, the dive team was called to assist
two male subjects who had been drinking and
decided to jump off the Coloma Bridge into the
American River. The subjects had no safety
equipment and were dressed only in swim
trunks. Partnering their swift water experts with
fire department swift water technicians, the
team was able to make contact and provide the
two individuals with personal flotation devices
and eventually escort them to safety.
The summer months are particularly busy for the Dive and Recovery unit, and this year was no exception. Throughout the summer, Dive members were called upon to provide aid and rescue citizens in all capacities. In addition to providing water rescue and recovery services in the many creeks, rivers, and lakes throughout the county, members also assisted with some tasks such as recovering and securing a dock that had come detached from the shore of Loon Lake.
El Dorado County Sheriff’s Dive Unit regularly partners with various agencies and specialty recovery units such as Bruce’s Legacy, a non-
profit volunteer organization who assists by
providing a side scan sonar system. This system
is capable of creating a very high resolution, near
photo-like image of exactly what is lying in the
waterbed. This type of assistance is incredibly
valuable to have before sending divers into the
water. Once a potential target has been
identified using the sonar, divers deploy a
remote operated vehicle (ROV) to confirm,
saving valuable time and reducing human risk.
This year, the dive team partnered with allied
agencies and organizations seven times and was
successful in their respective missions.
Most recently, the dive unit was called upon in
October to assist Bruce’s Legacy in the recovery
of a body from Fallen Leaf Lake. Bruce’s Legacy
completed searches of Fallen Leaf Lake using
their side scan sonar and ROV. An unidentified
male subject was located in 212’ of water. Dive
Team members responded to assist with the
recovery. The ROV was used to recover the body
to about 15’ depth, at which time dive team
members completed underwater bagging of the
body along with the recovery of additional
personal items which were brought up
separately by ROV.
The skilled individuals assigned to this team are
deeply committed to the Sheriff’s Vision of
“Total Care.” Although the nature of their job can
be grave, they also have the opportunity to play
an integral part in rescue and recovery. Providing
closure and comfort to friends and family
members is sometimes the best way to provide
service to the community.
Dive Team
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