Emergency Corps volunteers provide extra eyes, ears wherever needed
By SHARON KERR Staff Writer

Newsboy photo/Charles Kerr CALENDAR CREW- members of the Jasper County Emergency Corps posed and poised for 2008. Front row: Craig Fusell,Tammy Fussel, Noel Monzigo, Billy Williford,Wayne Turner, Tom Hilton, Curtis Kelly. Behind: David Littlefield, George Coleman, Marjorie Branch, Carl Dahlquist, Robert McWhorter, Ronnie Branch,A.D. Mays, Deborah Littlefield, John Bryan, Gary House,William Lawrence, Joe Shavers.

The good news for the summer of 2007 is that the Jasper County Emergency Corps has had few emergency call-outs this year, according to Billy Williford, head of the all-volunteer search and recovery team.

The Jasper County Emergency Corps (JCEC) assists law enforcement and other organizations in many ways, but one of their primary functions is search and recovery in the water, in Jasper and the surrounding counties many lakes and rivers.

JCEC was first organized in 1972 by Aubrey Cole and consisted mostly of VFW members.

"There just wasn't enough manpower for a drowning," Williford said. "We do primarily water work but we also help search for lost children and hunters, for Alzheimer's patients, anywhere a lot of people are needed."

Newsboy photo/Charles Kerr WHEN YOU ARE DIVING in zero visibility, underwater communication becomes key to performing an effective search, and keeping the diver safe. Billy Williford demonstrated a full face mask with underwater speakers to a group of kids attending National Night Out.

In the case of a hostage situation or an escaped prisoner, they might set up a command post, provide lights and a generator, and help secure the perimeter.

"We're not law enforcement," Williford said, "but we can provide the extra eyes and ears and the logistics to back up officers.

"The bad news is that when we have a long lull with no activity, people lose interest," Williford said. The size of his volunteer group has varied from 15 to 40, "but we always need more."

Nineteen were on hand for the annual calendar picture at the August meeting this year.

The group meets the third Tuesday at 7 p.m. each month on Lela Street behind the Jasper County Sheriff's office.

Would-be volunteers must attend three consecutive meetings and be voted in before they become a member of the Corps. City councilwoman Gloria Monzingo will become eligible at the next meeting, Sept. 18.

No special skills are required. Many of the volunteers are also firefighters, have first aid skills, or work with other civic groups.

Some members like ham radio operator Robert McWhorter, who is also the county's radio officer, bring a set of skills with them.

Training opportunities are announced at meetings. Coming up, Corps members can take a twoevening course Sept. 17-18 at the Fire Hall on scene preservation at fire-related deaths, or attend the Sept. 24 Texas Commission on Environmental Quality seminar on gas/oil spills.

But the bottom line is that almost anyone can provide a useful service at the JCEC, even if it is records keeping or supplying water to thirsty searchers.

Search and Recovery

Four members of the Corps, including Williford, are divers who have completed the Galveston Police Department training as "Underwater Crime Scene Investigator."

David Littlefield, another CSI diver, said they practiced recovering a mannequin and putting it in a body bag underwater, to try to preserve as much of the evidence as possible.

They also had their masks duct-tapped to simulate zero-visibility, which is common in lake diving. They then had to follow a rope course that included swimming into (and backing out of) obstructions like a culvert.

"We swam under a tarp," Williford said, "and the bubbles we exhaled lifted it up and caused the sides to pull in against us. That's an eerie feeling when you can't see anything."

When they are called to a water scene in Jasper, more often than not it is to search for evidence rather than a body. They are looking for a weapon, a vehicle, or some other item a suspect thought he could dispose of in the river.

Williford said in CSI school they learned to recover a handgun in tupperware, or a rifle in a PVC tube, in order to gather as much of the surrounding sediments as possible.

Williford says DNA will last several days under water, and fingerprints several weeks.

JCEC has a pontoon boat that makes a good dive platform, several smaller boats and a jet ski. Many of the items JCEC has were confiscated in drug or criminal cases and donated to the corps.

They also have an underwater camera to record evidence or help with searches, but in lakes and muddy rivers, its use is limited.

One thing that makes it easier and safer for divers, who often can't see their hand in front of their face, is state-of-the-art full face masks with radio communications.

Surface crew can watch the bubbles and guide divers to turn left or right, or remind them it's time to check their air.

Other JCEC members assist as ground crew, with communications, and safety back-up.

Williford says his crew also helps with many other events that just require lots of people. They help with parking at graduation. Sept. 22 they will turn out for the Cast for Kids, an event where disadvantaged children get to enjoy a day of fishing at Ebenezer Park. JCEC will use their boats to provide safety backup on the lake.

"We'll be there with Texas Parks and Wildlife starting at 8 a.m.," Williford said. "We have a good time right along with the kids."

For more information, call Williford at 384-5458 or attend the next meeting, Sept. 18.