Pennington County

Sheriff's Office

Thief River Falls, Minnesota

A Brief History of the Pennington County Dive Team...

For nearly 30 years there has been at least one person from within the law enforcement community qualified to dive.  During this time it became apparent that a need existed to have a group of divers that were both equipped and qualified.  In 1987 a discussion began on the possibility of organizing a team.  This eventually led to a tri-county effort, known as the Immediate Response Rescue Team.   A joint powers contract was developed between the counties of Pennington, Red Lake and Polk.

From this concept it was decided that the team would exist, function and operate solely on donations, be they from private sources, businesses or organizations.  Seed money to start the team, amounting to over $50,000, was obtained in the form of a grant from the Northwest Emergency Medical Services.  The money was used for diver’s certification classes and equipment.

Because of the nature of the diving involved, it was decided that all divers, and anyone else involved with the dive team, had to be either law enforcement or fire department staff.  They were paid no salary, and any time spent working in the capacity, as a dive team member was voluntary.  This was necessary to further fund the dive team budget so that more equipment could be purchased and more divers could be trained.

Due to attrition, retirement, transfers and financial issues the three counties eventually ended their joint venture and formed their own teams.  Today the Pennington County Dive Team consists of 8 members.  Six divers are fully qualified and experienced, with two recent additions that are in training.  In addition to the team members, there are 5 other certified and qualified divers with the Dept of Natural Resources stationed around Northwest Minnesota that can be called on to assist.  The Pennington County Dive Team is made up of deputies from the Pennington County Sheriff’s Department, police officers from the Thief River Falls Police Department and troopers from the Minnesota State Patrol.  Many of the support services needed to sustain a Dive Team operation are provided by other public safety organizations such as, area fire departments and emergency medical services.  For example, the St. Hilaire Fire Department owns a portable compressor, which can be used to fill air tanks on location.  This makes the portable compressor a valuable tool, as dive operations may be located in remote areas. The Pennington County Sheriff’s Department maintains the fiscal and operational responsibility of the Dive Team.

While the Dive Team’s primary mission is rescue and recovery, the team is also available for other underwater work. This includes recovery of property, inspection of underwater structures and photography.  The Dive Team is also active throughout the year giving demonstrations to students and the public during community activities, such as National Night Out, Safety Camp and Career Days.  The Dive Team has worked all over Northwestern Minnesota, including Lake of the Woods, Lake Bronson, Mud Lake, Long Lake, and Lake LaSalle, in addition to many rivers, streams and ditches.  As originally intended, there have never been any charges for dive rescue missions.  However, generous donations provided by requesting agencies, as well as continuing support from local organizations, have helped to sustain future dive team operations and endeavors.

Future goals for the Dive Team are to develop better training methods for more effective response and recovery work.  This includes continued upgrade of communications equipment so that the divers can have more effective contact with personnel that are either in a boat or on the shore.  This is especially critical in ice diving situations.  A waterproof camera capable of taking quality photographs under the water in excess of 100 feet.  An enclosed trailer that is loaded and fully equipped to sustain a dive operation would enhance our ability to respond to a call within 30 minutes.  While theses are three of the immediate goals of the Dive Team, there are ongoing maintenance demands and training needs that make continued funding of the Dive Team a challenge.

(MDH 2002)