The Marquette Fire Department has been training hard this summer to ensure their part in that rescue efforts are as solid and time efficient as possible
MARQUETTE -- For the Marquette City Fire Department, their training now includes a water scooter.
This piece of equipment moves its user along at three to three-and-a-half miles an hour, allowing them to not only reach a distressed swimmer sooner, but also arrive there without becoming exhausted.
At this particular training off Founder's Landing, the fire chief heads out into the water; two firemen then take off to make a rescue. They practice over and over, and with each attempt, they shave seconds off their time.
"It did good for the first time out," says Marquette City Fire Chief Tom Belt. "Room to improve. Our time out to the victim on the kayak and back to land has drastically improved, just with the new machinery that we have, so as we get comfortable with it and are able to drill, it's going to be that much more efficient."
Belt says the department has been training all summer, about three times a week. And as always, he wants to remind swimmers to use caution when heading to the water.
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