For deep-water rescues, the Water Rescue Team employs severe measures

RAPID CITY, S.D. (KEVN) - The Pennington County Water Rescue team was hard at work this week, with two drownings in the area.

The first one was at Memorial Park in Rapid City on Tuesday, then one at Pactola Reservoir, where the body was found 130 ft deep in the water.

The Water Rescue team had help from other agencies in the area to assist in the recovery.

Captain Keith Trojanowski with the Rapid City Fire Department said that it’s difficult to recover a body at that depth.

”About every 33 ft of water will equal about an atmosphere of pressure that we fill,” Trojanowski said. “So, as we dive into those environments, and we sink with increasing pressures of atmosphere on us, that changes some of the dynamics that our body is used to.”

Trojanowski said that the divers have safety stops that they take every 20 ft for three minutes to get adjusted to the pressure.