By James B. Bartle
The Sullivan Fire District Water Rescue Team will be on active duty this Memorial Day weekend at Meramec Caverns Campground.
For several years, the fire district has manned personnel at the Caverns’ stretch of the Meramec River due to the number of fatal drownings in this area of water.
Since the district has conducted this program during the summer holidays, the number of drownings has dropped dramatically.
“We have had no drownings on this stretch of water while we’ve been on active duty in this area,” said Sullivan Fire Chief Rich White. “If we have had swimmers drown in this stretch of water, it’s been after our crews have left. We’ve been very fortunate to see the drownings decline in this area during the holidays.”
The teams will be at the Caverns site, Saturday through Monday, and will use this water time to also conduct several trainings in the area of water.
“We will be holding dive/water training while our crews are in the area, which will provide a great education environment as well,” concluded White.