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Job-related injuries create mounting danger for search and rescue workers
‘Guys are getting injured faster than we can replace them’
David Burke · CBC News · Posted: Jun 24, 2018 8:00 AM AT
ubmerged underwater more than 270 kilometres off the coast of Newfoundland, Sgt. Damien Robison almost ran out of air.
He was tethered to a helicopter hovering over a nearby fishing boat that was in distress. He was in the water to help save five sealers, but was hit by a 12-metre wave that drove him below the surface.
Chunks of ice in the water whipped by as Robison tried to puzzle out how he and the sealers would survive.
That happened on March 5, 2017, on what Robison considers a good day on the job. It was good because he, his crew and the sealers all got home safe.
After that rescue, Robison said he was pretty banged up. Getting hit by a wave almost the size of a four-storey building can do that.
He's not alone. Many Canadian Forces Search and Rescue Technicians (SAR techs) are getting injured on the job and it's putting a strain on the service.
More at http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/search-and-rescue-injuries-sar-techs-helicopters-1.4718469