Lee County Search and Rescue Uses Their ROV

Rachel Doornekamp | October 16th, 2019

Deep Trekker’s underwater ROVs provide rapid and effective response for drowning and evidence recovery missions.

With real-time visuals and tailor-made tools including grabber arms and sonar to navigate turbid waters, Deep Trekker’s ROVs offer a portable and easily deployable device for search and rescue teams.

We caught up with Shane Seagroves, the Emergency Services Director of Lee County Government, during a training activity for the Emergency Services Department to see how Deep Trekker has impacted their rescue and recovery operations.

How does Lee County use Deep Trekker?

Lee County integrates the Deep Trekker ROV directly into their search and recovery procedures. After conducting witness interviews and testimonies to determine an appropriate area, the Lee County team uses sonar patterns on their boats to pick out targets underwater. Rather than suiting up and sending divers down to confirm the targets, the team sends an ROV into the water to review the targets in minutes. Once the victim or evidence has been found, divers either follow the tether to the target or the Deep Trekker ROV is used to retrieve the evidence.

Why Deep Trekker?

“At the end of the day we’re looking for 3 things; safety, efficiency and timeliness. And it [Deep Trekker] hits all 3 of those for us,” said Seagroves.

Deep Trekker ROVs offer incredibly useful tools specifically for search and rescue missions. Portability, straightforward handling and sophisticated add ons make the DTG3 and Revolution ROVs valuable additions to any search and rescue team.

“It’s not just our operations, it’s more of a regional asset for the state of North Carolina. It has sped up the process by which we find evidence, it’s increased the safety factor because we don't have to have divers in the water as much as before. Anytime you can take and use something mechanical or electronic to make it safer for our responders, it’s definitely a big asset to what we’re trying to do,” shared Seagroves.

Let us help find the right ROV for your SAR operations

Divers and ROVs

Search and recovery missions can be dangerous and time consuming for divers, making an underwater ROV an incredibly useful tool for teams. Working in tandem with divers, ROVs provide instant eyes in the water to assist in many facets of recovery, from the quick identification of targets to the retrieval of items from dangerous locations.

“We didn’t set out to put divers out of business, we wanted to make it safer for them,” noted Seagroves. Divers and ROVs together make an excellent team for efficient and safe search and rescue operations.

Learn more about how Deep Trekker ROVs are changing search and rescue or contact us to speak to an industry specialist.