THUNDER BAY – There aren’t too many people brave enough to leap in to the winter waters of Lake Superior in March.
But that’s just what emergency services officers did on Friday, completing a snowmobile training course with a little first-hand experience.
OPP Provincial Const. Andrew Yorke was the second to take the plunge, spending 90 seconds in the frigid waters near the municipal boat launch.
It was worth the sacrifice, said Yorke, knowing he could be called up at any time to assist in a water rescue, putting his own life in danger at the same time.
Knowing how to get out of that situation and not to panic is important, he said.
“We’ll have floater suits on, but we’ll be jumping in the water and the body goes through a set of responses, so we’ll be acclimatizing ourselves to that for the first minute,” Yorke said. “We’ll be trying to catch our breath and then we’ll be trying to crawl out of the water or having someone try to rescue us by throwing us a rope.
“That way, if we go through an experience like that, we’ll be more prepared.”
No matter how much one thinks they’re ready to hit waters that are well below 70 C, it’s still a shock to the system, Yorke said.
Luckily, during his career with the OPP, he’s never had to jump in.
But Yorke said that can change at a moment’s notice.
People do make mistakes, he added, noting bad luck or poor planning can also lead to disastrous situations.
“At the same time, we want the public to know the OPP is trained and we are ready to help out people in those situations,” Yorke said.
Participants, which also included paramedics and Nishnawbe Aski Police Service officers, had to jump into the lake twice, learning how to get out using their arms and legs, then escaped with the assistance of ice picks the second time around.
