A prolonged period of heavy rainfall besieged Southern California this past rain season, bringing 37.5 inches of precipitation to Ventura County -- a lot considering the average annual rainfall is 15.35 inches. More remarkable, the period from Dec. 27 to Jan. 10 brought 16.97 inches of rain, the wettest consecutive 15-day period ever in the Ventura area and more rain than is normally received in a year. These storms sent the area into a state of emergency with flooding, debris flows, hail, several weak tornados and fatal mudslides.

While some communities choose to train many safety personnel at a basic level of flood rescue skills, the Ventura County Fire Department opts to train six-member cadres at the highest level. The swiftwater team from the Ventura County Sheriff's Office/Search and Rescue also trains to similar standards.

Rescue roster

The fire department cadres are made up of two rescue swimmers, two vessel operators, a rigger and a team leader. Rescue swimmers are members who have completed the 500 meter swim in less than 10 minutes; 80% of the cadre is at this level. Vessel operators are members qualified in inflatable rescue boat and rescue watercraft operation. Although all members are tested annually in rope rescue systems, riggers are members with more advanced rope rescue systems skills. Team leaders are cadre members at the rank of fire captain and must have several past deployments to be considered for the position.

All cadre members are tested annually in all positions and can perform in any position other than those they have not qualified for. While this system limits the number of trained responders, it ensures that on arrival at the scene, they can quickly and safely accomplish the rescue. To increase the number of qualified responders, VCFD and VCSO/SAR participate in joint training exercises, emphasizing proper rescue skills and using each other's strengths to better deploy the proper resources to events, as both teams together proved in Ventura's relentless January storms.

With the rain sparing little of Southern California, the teams were well-prepared, carrying their personal water-rescue gear with them at all times. Both agencies also began to pre-deploy teams. Determining a pre-deployment involves several elements. If the county watershed district, NOAA, county OES or county meteorologists have predicted large rain events with certain conditions, a team is pre-deployed. Also, pre-deployments are initiated when the situation meets the following criteria:

• Unsaturated ground conditions

  An 80% prediction of receiving two inches or greater rainfall in coastal areas and heavier amounts in the mountains and foothills; and

• Saturated ground conditions

  An 80% prediction of receiving one inch or greater rainfall in the coastal areas and heavier amounts in the mountains and foothills.

Canyon confinements

The fire department pre-deployed two teams in the morning of Jan. 6 and another team two days later when rainfall activity reached a predetermined amount. The sheriff's department pre-deployed a team on the morning of Jan. 7 and began actively patrolling flood-prone areas. These teams remained active around the clock with few breaks in activity until Jan. 11. The main objective on the first day of activation for both teams was to patrol common school routes near flood-control channels and other areas potential danger areas. The morning of the second day, Ventura continued to receive light steady rain, which grew heavier throughout the day, with light flooding beginning to affect the lowest of the low-lying areas.

It wasn't until the evening of the third day, Jan. 8, that the pounding rain began to show its power. Both departments' swiftwater rescue units responded to a victim in Matilija Canyon, a narrow canyon with only one way in and out. Upon arrival, both teams determined that the point where the victim was last seen was inaccessible, as the floodwaters rushing down the canyon blocked access to many homes farther up the canyon. Because of the search element involved with no active rescue component, this particular event fell to the sheriff's department. In time, the SAR ground team located the victim underwater entangled in irrigation piping and attached to a tensioned diagonal across the river. The victim was attempting to cross the river while tiled in with a chest harness to a static line. Both departments' teams recovered the victim's body.

Jan. 9 involved two more swiftwater rescues, both involving victims trapped in vehicles in fast-moving floodwaters. The first swiftwater rescue involved a female, in immediate danger, trapped in her pickup truck in Matilija Creek at the Ojala Crossing. This rescue was completed by a fire department rescue swimmer reaching the truck and then swimming the victim back. Had the vehicle moved downstream, the teams had been trained and were prepared to enter the water and move the victim to the side of the channel. Retrievers were put in place downstream along with safety measures, and the victim was brought to safety with cooperation of all team members.

Immediately following this rescue, the teams were called out to another rescue of a victim in a vehicle trapped in water in La Cañada Canyon. In this case, the sheriff's department team reached the scene moments ahead of the fire department. Once both teams were on scene, the SAR team devised a rescue plan, which both teams implemented with success.

La Conchita

On Jan. 10, the rain came down ever harder. With the recent success of the teams working together over the past days, the plan was to develop a task force of a six VCFD members and five VCSO/SAR members to respond to swiftwater incidents. After about four to five hours of chasing ghost calls, a mudslide occurred at La Conchita. All units available throughout the county were sent to respond to this deadly mudslide.

Both agencies conducted search-and-rescue operations with the successful rescue of three trapped victims and the recovery of all victims reported missing. Two of the trapped victims were entangled in debris from the structure they were in when the mudslide struck. One victim sustained a severely injured leg and was airlifted out.

The mudslide had pushed the second victim down the hill, leaving him to rest against a car and the outside wall of a house. This victim was extricated from below several structural walls with minor injuries. Both of these victims were out of harm's way within three hours of the arrival of rescuers. The third victim was located by a water rescue member who was told by a local who had heard her scream out. After several minutes, the victim was located approximately 12 feet under numerous wood and stucco walls, debris, trees, and mud. This rescue proved to be the most challenging of the three and was effectively completed about six hours after the event began.

The Ventura County has created a very successful emergency response system to water- and technical-rescue events, as well as urban search-and-rescue operations and skills, through mutual respect and cooperation from all members and productive joint training exercises. The value of this joint operation was realized early on during January's events. Together, the VCFD and VCSO/SAR conducted a total of 28 successful rescues and two body recoveries. Several members from both agencies received medals of valor and lifesaving citations for performing above and beyond, with little regard for their own safety.

Jon Jelle is a captain with the Ventura County (Calif.) Fire Department

Flood Rescue Program Development

The Ventura County Fire Department started the swiftwater/flood rescue program in the early 1990s with 12 members who obtained required training individually. At the time, Swiftwater Rescue Technician-Level One was the recognized qualification as the industry standard. At present, Swiftwater Rescue Technician-Level One and Advanced are the minimum required skill sets to become a member on the cadre. An annual swim evaluation, skills evaluation, participation in no less than six training sessions and/or deployments are required to stay current.

Today, the department maintains 30 highly trained water-rescue members. These members are required to complete an annual swim evaluation, demonstrate required skill sets, assist in shore-based skills training for truck and engine companies and participate in a number of deployments and training.

All cadre members are required to swim 500 meters in less than 12 minutes, thread water for three minutes, swim 25 meters in less than 30 seconds. They also must retrieve 20 pounds from approximately 10 feet under water, surface and swim five meters to the edge of the pool. Rescue swimmers are required to swim that 500 meters in 10 minutes. Ocean rescue swimmers are required to swim a 1,000-meter open-water swim in less than 20 minutes. All members are tested annually in rope-rescue skills and system rigging. Members are required to pass several skills, including throw bag deployment on moving victims, shallow and deep water crossing, defensive swimming skills, identifying safe areas on waterways, making “live bait” rescue swims, and successfully capturing a victim and removing him or her using a throw bag or tension diagonal rope system. All cadre members must display an extensive knowledge of water hydrology and all shore-based systems used by engine and truck companies.