CLERMONT — When Bob Tracy took up scuba diving 30 years ago, little did he know that the recreational activity would come into play after he joined the Lake County Sheriff’s Office in 1985.

Tracy, now a detective with the Sheriff’s Office,is one of a few deputies who work underwater when called upon.
“There were very few people diving,” he said. “It wasn’t really a unit. We were just a group of guys. We used our own equipment.”

For 10 years, Tracy, 48, has been team leader of the Sheriff’s Office’s Underwater Search and Recovery Unit, which began in 1991.

These days the unit consists of 17 certified divers who were given their equipment, including full face masks, which allow underwater communication and protection from contamination.

“The team has progressed a long way from when I first came on the team to where we’re at now,” he said.

Tracy, a master diver and paramedic, said the team is called out 20 to 30 times a year in Lake or to assist other agencies. He responds to all calls, which could include evidence recovery, boating accidents, drownings, vehicle recovery and plane accidents.

“Plane crashes are probably the most dangerous we dive on,” he said. “Planes, when they hit the water, they just go into pieces. Everything is sharp.”

Each month the team gets together to practice techniques such as line searches, search patterns and emergency drills, he said.

“Once we go in that water we don’t know what’s in there,” he said. “Most of the time when we dive, we can’t see our hands in front of our face. It’s all by feel.”

Tracy recalled a recent drowning of a father and son. After a weeklong search, the victims surfaced. They were holding on to each other. Tragedy is part of the job, Tracy said.

“You just do it,” Tracy said.

On another occasion, the team was called to search Lake Griffin for a driver of a vehicle that went off Picciola Bridge. The team found the vehicle, but no driver.

In the midst of the search, the team found another vehicle, a wallet still on front seat.

A search determined that the second vehicle had been stolen. The wallet’s owner was found, incarcerated in Alabama. He admitted that he stole the vehicle 20 years ago, Tracy said.

“You never know what we’re going to find when we go out,” he said.

On occasion, Tracy finds time to dive for fun. He and his daughter, who recently became a certified diver, checked out a coral reef in Cozumel, Mexico.

“Diving can be a great experience for all ages,” he said. “It’s more exciting when you dive with your family.”

Source: orlandosentinel.com