Everyday people are becoming heroes by training to save people in icy water

People would usually spend their day off resting and relaxing, but for members of a volunteer emergency crew, they’re using their time off to train how to rescue people from icy water.

The Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office Emergency Service Dive Team has 14 people. All of them are volunteers. On Sunday, they spent the day at Lake Isabel to train in the freezing water.

Team member Stanley McFall is also a mechanic and conductor for the Royal Gorge Route Railroad in Canon City. He said balancing family, work and the team can be a challenge.

“It can be very taxing on the body sometimes, especially when you are on a search and rescue for 24-36 hours in the mountains,” McFall said.

He’s part of the team because he wanted to give back to the community.

“I joined because it was exciting, a learning experience and to foremost save people,” McFall said.

The team responded to 13 calls last year, which broke a 50-year record.

“Last year was definitely a crazy year,” Dive Team Leader Nathan Whittington said.

He has been part of the crew for 16 years. He said this team is a tightly knit group.

“I love this team, it’s a bunch of friends and family,” he said.

Whittington said the most difficult part of ice diving is making sure people come back safely.

“You only have one entry and exit to get out. If you don’t find that hole on the way back out and watch how much air you consume, then that becomes the real risk of the ice dive,” he said.

The team is also trained in swift water rescue, which certifies the members in river rescues.