Hernando dive team finds debris, trash during training at sinkhole

HERNANDO COUNTY, Fla. - The Hernando County Sheriff's Office trains their dive team to be ready for any circumstances that could come up in emergencies. 

Since the state is covered with water from lakes, rivers and other water sources, having a dive team ready for any sort of response in that water is imperative. 

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It's why the sheriff's office sent their dive team for one such training event this past Monday.

What they're saying:

Several members of the Dive Team utilized a local sink there in Hernando to conduct some training. The surprise was the debris dumped in the sinkhole that was hidden under the surface.

While finding a pile of garbage might have derailed others, the Dive Team used the opportunity to work on their recovery and lifting skills. Recovering a broken lawn chair from the bottom of a 50-foot fresh water sink is one challenge, but a discarded safe is another. 

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The team worked to gather to use buoy bags to mark the items and then to raise each item with safety and their training in mind.

Hernando County Sheriff's Office Dive Team

Potentially, each item, a real world situation, would be evidence, so the preservation of the item became part of the training.

They successfully recovered discarded tires, a shopping cart, a motorcycle helmet, in addition to the safe and lawn chair and other debris.

Hernando County Sheriff's Office Dive Team recovered items

Why you should care:

The Florida Aquifer is the water source for many of the municipalities across the state. Hernando County is no different. The water source is also a key part of the health and well-being of the area's rivers and wildlife corridors.

READ: Hillsborough River meeting recovery goals after years of pollution

Keeping contaminants out of the water helps to contribute to the overall health of the aquifer.

In this case, the Hernando County Sheriff's Office Dive Team showed innovation and initiative when their training event turned into an underwater salvage and recovery cleanup.