• About
    • About Us
    • What We Cover
  • Advertise
    • Advertise
    • Our Advertisers
  • Contact
  • Donate
  • Send News
  • Subscribe

Oak Ridge Today

  • Home
  • Sign in
  • News
    • Business
    • Community
    • Education
    • Government
    • Health
    • Police and Fire
    • U.S. Department of Energy
    • Weather
  • Sports
    • High School
    • Middle School
    • Recreation
    • Rowing
    • Youth
  • Entertainment
    • Arts
    • Dancing
    • Movies
    • Music
    • Television
    • Theater
  • Premium Content
  • Obituaries
  • Classifieds




ORFD swimmers rescue stranded canoeist

Posted at 3:12 pm April 13, 2018
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Two Oak Ridge Fire Department swimmers rescued a man who had fallen out of a canoe near Clark Center Park in south Oak Ridge on Thursday afternoon, April 12, 2018, authorities said. (Photo courtesy City of Oak Ridge/Oak Ridge Fire Department)

Two Oak Ridge Fire Department swimmers rescued a man who had fallen out of a canoe near Clark Center Park in south Oak Ridge on Thursday afternoon, April 12, 2018, authorities said. (Photo courtesy City of Oak Ridge/Oak Ridge Fire Department)

 

Two Oak Ridge Fire Department swimmers rescued a man who had fallen out of a canoe near Clark Center Park in south Oak Ridge on Thursday afternoon, authorities said.

The man, who was not identified, cannot swim, but he was wearing a life jacket, the City of Oak Ridge said in a press release Friday. He was hanging onto a fence post in the water after falling out of his canoe, but he was cold and could not get himself back into the overturned canoe or to the shore, the press release said.

The Oak Ridge 911 dispatch center had received a call that a canoe had overturned in the cove at the entrance to Clark Center Park at about 3:35 p.m. Thursday.

Oak Ridge Fire Department Captain Jason Benjamin has been training a crew of firefighters to become rescue swimmers during the past 24 months, and their training was put to the test on Thursday, the press release said.

The ORFD did not have a place to launch its rescue boat in the area of the rescue, so the battalion chief placed rescue swimmers Logan Latham and Skyler West into the water to help the man and bring him to shore, the press release said.

“They entered the 57-degree water at 3:46 p.m. and swam approximately 40 yards out to the stranded man,” the release said. “By 3:50 p.m., Latham, West, and the man were all out of the water and safe. The swimmers were also able to retrieve the man’s canoe and most of his belongings.”

Advertisement

Anderson County EMS responded to the scene to evaluate the patient, but he refused all treatment and transport, the press release said. He reported no serious injuries.

The City of Oak Ridge is surrounded on three sides by water. There are many areas where canoes and kayaks can navigate, but rescue boats are unable to launch, the press release said.

“Rescue swimmers are often the only means of quickly reaching individuals who are in distress and bringing them to safety,” the release said.

City officials emphasized that the man was wearing a life jacket.

“This is an important lesson and message for all boaters: The weather may be warming up, but the water is still frigid and in less than four minutes, many individuals will begin to lose the ability to move effectively in the cold water,” the press release said. “The Oak Ridge Fire Department encourages all boaters to wear personal flotation devices, especially when in a canoe, kayak, or other small non-motorized water craft.”

More information will be added as it becomes available.


Do you appreciate this story or our work in general? If so, please consider a monthly subscription to Oak Ridge Today. See our Subscribe page here. Thank you for reading Oak Ridge Today.

Copyright 2018 Oak Ridge Today. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Filed Under: Fire, Front Page News, Oak Ridge, Police and Fire, Slider Tagged With: Anderson County EMS, City of Oak Ridge, Clark Center Park, Jason Benjamin, Logan Latham, Oak Ridge Fire Department, ORFD, ORFD swimmers, overturned canoe, rescue, rescue swimmers, Skyler West, stranded canoeist

Advertisements

 

Join the club!

If you appreciate our work, please consider subscribing. Besides helping us, your subscription will give you access to our premium content.

Most of our stories are free, brought to you by Oak Ridge Today with help from our members—advertisers, subscribers, and sponsors.

But some are premium content, available only to members. Those are in-depth, investigative, or exclusive stories that are available only on Oak Ridge Today. They generally require at least four hours to report, write, and publish.

You can subscribe for as little as $5 per month.

You can read more about your options here.

We currently offer five primary subscription options to readers, and they include benefits.

Basic

  • Basic monthly subscription ($5 per month)—access premium content
  • Basic annual subscription ($60 per year)—access premium content

Pro

  • Pro monthly subscription ($10 per month)—access premium content, get breaking news emails first, and submit one press release or public service announcement per month
  • Pro annual subscription ($100 per year)—save $20 per year, access premium content, get breaking news emails first, and submit one press release or public service announcement per month

Temporary

  • Temporary access ($3 per week for two weeks)

We also have advanced subscription options. You can see them here.

We also accept donations. You can donate here.

If you prefer to send a check for a subscription or donation, you may do so by mailing one to:

Oak Ridge Today
P.O. Box 6064
Oak Ridge, TN 37831

Thank you for your consideration and for reading Oak Ridge Today. We appreciate your support.

Commenting Guidelines

We welcome comments, but we ask you to follow a few guidelines:

1) Please use your real name, including last name. Please also use a valid e-mail address.
2) Be civil. Don't insult others, attack their character, or get personal.
3) Stick to the issues.
4) No profanity.
5) Keep your comments to a reasonable length and to a reasonable number per article.

We reserve the right to remove any comments that violate these guidelines. Comments held for review, usually from those posting for the first time, may not post if they violate these guidelines. Thank you for your patience and understanding. Thank you also for reading Oak Ridge Today and for participating in the discussion.

More information is available here.

More Police and Fire News

Crews repairing damage after crash knocks down power tower

Crews repair the damage to the Tennessee Valley Authority distribution system after a pickup truck crashed into a steel lattice transmission tower, causing widespread power outages in Oak Ridge and the surrounding area … [Read More...]

Part of South Illinois Ave. remains closed

A large high-voltage transmission tower was knocked down in a single-vehicle crash at Union Valley Road and South Illinois Avenue on Friday afternoon, Jan. 22, 2021, causing widespread power outages. Repairs are being … [Read More...]

Power restored to Oak Ridge except for Arboretum

Electric crews repair the damage caused by a crash into a TVA high-voltage transmission tower next to South Illinois Avenue in Oak Ridge on Friday, Jan. 22, 2021. (Photo courtesy City of Oak Ridge) Power was restored … [Read More...]

Charges pending, three injured in crash into TVA transmission tower

Charges are pending after a crash into an electrical transmission tower that caused widespread power outages Friday afternoon, Jan. 22, 2021, the Tennessee Highway Patrol said. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge … [Read More...]

Large transmission tower knocked down, causing power outages

A large electrical transmission tower was knocked down in a crash at Union Valley Road and South Illinois Avenue on Friday afternoon, Jan. 22, 2021, causing widespread power outages. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge … [Read More...]

More Police and Fire

Recent Posts

  • Crews repairing damage after crash knocks down power tower
  • Part of South Illinois Ave. remains closed
  • Power restored to Oak Ridge except for Arboretum
  • Charges pending, three injured in crash into TVA transmission tower
  • Large transmission tower knocked down, causing power outages
  • Protesters will say nuclear weapons illegal under UN treaty
  • VITA Tax Center opens Feb. 9
  • Roane State temporarily closes Coffey-McNally Building
  • TVA will blast rock to build substation
  • Council to consider accepting airport grants

Recent Comments

  • Matt Bailey on Dodson also wants to serve as mayor pro tem
  • Mark Caldwell on Dodson also wants to serve as mayor pro tem
  • Matt Bailey on Dodson also wants to serve as mayor pro tem
  • Mark Caldwell on Dodson also wants to serve as mayor pro tem
  • Matt Bailey on Dodson also wants to serve as mayor pro tem
  • Tracy Powers on Planning Commission to consider Main Street apartments, plan revisions
  • johnhuotari on Four incumbents re-elected to Oak Ridge City Council
  • Levi D. Smith on Four incumbents re-elected to Oak Ridge City Council
  • samuel hopwood on Housing: Apartments proposed on former AMSE site
  • Matt Bailey on Robin Smith named Oak Ridge police chief

Search Oak Ridge Today

About Us

About Oak Ridge Today
What We Cover

How To

Advertise
Subscribe

Contact Us

Contact Oak Ridge Today

Copyright © 2021 Oak Ridge Today