TIERRA VERDE, Florida. – Calls for help on the water have nearly doubled around Fort De Soto and Tierra Verde in Pinellas County, and now first responders answering those calls have a water rescue boat.

“Between all the beaches, we have the most waterfront property of any area in Pinellas County,” said Jim Millican, division chief of the Lealman Fire District.

Under a contract with the county, the Lealman Fire District provides firefighters at the Tierra Verde Fire Station, and they are the first to respond to Fort De Soto Beach and the Tierra Verde areas.

These calls are coming much more frequently.

Due to the growing community and tourism, nearly three million people visit Fort DeSoto Beach each year and the number of water rescue calls has more than doubled.

From 20 calls in the years before 2020, we now receive over 50 calls per year.

“These were genuine medical emergencies that required the intervention of paramedics,” Millican said.

Pinellas County Commissioners have just approved the purchase of the fire district’s first Jon Boat and Jet Ski to assist in shallow water rescue operations.

Kayakers, paddleboarders and boaters often become stuck or stranded in the mangroves or shallower parts of the coast.

“It’s frustrating because you want to do the rescue and help people,” Millican said.

Previously, firefighters often had to rely on other departments to bring their boats, which they said could add 30 minutes to response time. The patient or person in distress had to wait longer for help to arrive.

“This will allow us to reach them much faster,” Millican said.

Sometimes the boats from neighboring departments were far too large for the canals at Fort DeSoto, so the department gets equipment better suited to shallower water.

Currently, teams use a rescue board that resembles a surfboard, sometimes risking themselves and wading through the water to reach a person in need of a water rescue.

“It’s dangerous to enter these waters. They’re encrusted with a lot of oyster shells. It’s dangerous to step on these things and cut yourself on them. There’s a risk of superinfections. It’s dangerous for our firefighters. There’s also the risk of being caught in a rip current when you’re trying to get to the patient,” Millican said.

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The department is currently training all firefighters in water rescue and expects to have the water team operational with its new equipment within the next three months.

“Our crews are very excited. They are full of energy. This is a new type of rescue for us,” Millican said.