CI team is set up for national sea rescue

Thursday 18th October 2007, 12:00AM BST.

A TEAM of 50 Channel Island firefighters has been formed to respond to a fire or chemical spillage at sea.

The team will be part of a national organisation set up by the office of the Deputy Prime Minister under an initiative called Sea Change. It could also be called into action in incidents off the south coast of England. Yesterday some of the team members were training in being winched from a helicopter onto the States tug the Duke of Normandy in St Aubin’s Bay. Under the scheme, the CI team can now call on other similarly trained response crews based in areas including Hampshire, east Sussex or Kent if they need help with a major emergency in Channel Island waters. The CI group will offer the same support to crews from those areas if they require it.

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