BAMSAR MINUTES
Minutes of the November, 2006, BAMSAR meeting, held at Mastic. Thanks to Mastic’s dive team for their hospitality.
Present: Bayport, Bellport, Brookhaven, Mastic, Mastic Beach, Tim Dahlen and Center Moriches.
Excused: Hagerman, Ed Michels (EHTMP), Jim Bowra (SCSD) and Coast Guard.
Old Business:
Dive Rescue class: Waiting on final bills. Repayment of instruction fees: Two departments are outstanding.
Discussion was held on Patchogue’s suggestion to move the meetings to Sundays, in conjunction with a dive drill. A vote was requested, and the majority voted to keep the meetings on the second Thursday of the month, due to the fact that most departments hold drills/activities on Sundays, that would interfere with our drills.
New Business:
Patchogue will be holding an LGS Dive Awareness Class, on Sunday, 03 December. This is an 8 hour class. It is strongly recommended that Chiefs, officers, other potential incident commanders and Line Tenders, take this class. The cost is $70/man. Register four persons and the fifth is free. Fliers were e-mailed to each department’s BAMSAR representative, to be downloaded and returned by no later than 25 November. For information, call the following persons:
Lt. Jeff Saperstein, at E-mail: jsaperstein@bayportfd.org, or by phone: (516) 795-4100 ext 250, or, by fax: (516) 804-1170;
Barry Lipsky, at phone (631) 495-4471;
Lifeguard Systems, at phone: (845) 657-5544.
Discussion was held on the new Coast Guard command realignment. Members agreed that it has not negatively impacted rescue responses by either the Coast Guard, or by BAMSAR-affiliated units. The only thing found to be a problem, is that the general boating public still is under the impression that the radio room in East Moriches is still open. A recommendation would be to have a reminder placed in the local papers, at the beginning of each of the next few boating seasons, advising the local boaters to call Sector Long Island Sound, in emergency.
Hagerman has a new boat (19 foot Carolina Skiff, ex-Bellport) in service, and is able to respond to any incident.
Mastic is selling three Ocean Reef, full face masks, with comms hookup; rebuilt in Oct. 06. See Randy, at Hampton Dive Center, for more information.
Tim Dahlen will get with Jim Bowra, to plan a possible ice drill, during the December/January time frame.
Tentative meeting schedule for 2007, is as follows (pending individual unit approval):
January 11th, Mastic Beach; February, Brookhaven; March, Patchogue; April, Center Moriches; May, OPEN, need sponsor; June, Bellport; July, No Meeting; August, OPEN, need sponsor; September, Hagerman; October, Bayport; November, Mastic; December, No Meeting.
If any agency is not able to host their assigned meeting, please contact the Secretary.
Training:
Dive Rescue Awareness course, Patchogue. See New Business, above.
Ice Rescue Tech 1 class, 3 & 4 February, Lindenhurst.
Dive Rescue 1 tentatively to be scheduled for 17-20 May, 2007. This will be Thursday and Friday nights, all day Saturday and Sunday.
If anyone has, or knows of, any training going on that may be of interest to the membership, please feel free to send notice of the training to either the BAMSAR webmaster@bamsar.org, or to the Secretary, at o_foghladha@yahoo.com.
Next meeting: Thursday, 11 January, 2007, at 1930, at Mastic Beach FD.
Anyone needing directions, please contact the Secretary.
Any corrections, additions, or questions; please contact the Secretary.
Respectfully,
John Foley