SWP - Swiftwater Rescue

Rescue of a person in moving water (rivers, creeks in flood, spillways, culverts, flooded streets, storm channels) at the department’s declared swiftwater level (Water, Ice and Swiftwater Rescue Program section 5.1): shore-based for every department; operations (shore-based and shallow-water contact with swiftwater PPE) and technician (in-water swimming rescues, tensioned systems, boat operations in current) for trained teams. It applies at incidents and in the pre-season refresher.

• Drowning of rescuers: foot entrapment in moving water above the knee, strainers (trees, fences, debris, grates), low-head dams and weirs with recirculating hydraulics, undercut banks, culverts.
• A tethered swimmer held under by the current with no quick release; a rope across the channel at surface level that pins a swimmer or a boat.
• Cold water: cold shock, loss of movement, hypothermia; contaminated flood water (sewage, fuel, chemicals); debris and vehicles in the flow; submerged hazards and unstable banks.
• Night, rain and rising water; bystanders entering; vehicles in water with occupants.
• Rescuers in structural gear or without flotation near the edge.

1. Elimination. Nobody enters moving water if the victim can be reached by voice, reach, throw or boat, or will self-rescue to a reachable point downstream.
2. Substitution. Throw bags from several points downstream; a boat on a tether at technician level; a reach from a bridge or a bank rather than wading.
3. Engineering. Swiftwater PFDs with quick-release harnesses (Canadian approval status verified per model), water rescue helmets, thermal protection, throw bags, tethers that release under load, the logged rope kit; tensioned diagonal and boat-on-tether systems only at technician level (NFPA 2500, 2022).
4. Administrative. This procedure; upstream spotter and downstream safety before anyone works at the edge; the flotation rule; no rope across the channel at surface level; no wading above the knee in current; no-entry hazards named (dams, weirs, strainers, culverts); the pre-season refresher in moving water; decontamination after flood water (MLITSD, n.d., GN 6-3).
5. PPE. Swiftwater PFD with quick-release harness, water rescue helmet (never a structural helmet), dry suit or thermal layer, gloves, footwear with ankle support and no trapping laces, knife on the PFD, whistle, light; Canadian-approved flotation for everyone else near the edge (Small Vessel Regulations [CA], 2026).

Swiftwater PFDs and helmets for the team; throw bags (at least four); reach poles; tethers and the rope kit; a boat where the level includes it; victim flotation; patient packaging; thermal blankets and warming kit; lighting; radios with a channel plan; decontamination supplies; medical equipment and oxygen.

Shore-based: the first-arriving company. Operations: an officer in charge, an upstream spotter, at least two downstream safety positions with throw bags, the contact rescuer(s), a tether team, medical and a safety officer; technician adds the swimming rescuers, the belay and system riggers and the boat crew. Every team member trained to the swiftwater job performance requirements at the declared level (NFPA 1006, 2021) with this season’s refresher in moving water on record.

1. Hold the shore. Command; bystanders back; apparatus on firm ground back from the bank; flotation on everyone within the water’s-edge distance; structural gear off anyone who will work at the edge.
2. Size up. Victim (number, position, holding on, moving, in a vehicle), water speed and level and whether rising, hazards upstream and downstream (dams, weirs, strainers, culverts, bridges, debris), access points, the downstream catch points, light and weather, contamination. Complete the size-up card.
3. Set the safety positions first. Upstream spotter to call debris and surges; at least two downstream safety positions with throw bags at the catch points. Decision point: are the spotter and the downstream safety in place and in radio contact? If not, nobody works at the edge.
4. Talk. Instruct the victim: feet up and downstream, float, work toward the bank or the catch point; stay with the vehicle if it is stable; do not stand up in current.
5. Reach. A pole, a ladder, a line from a bridge or a bank where the victim is close.
6. Throw. Throw bags from upstream of the victim so the line swings to them; instruct the victim to hold the line on their chest and lie back; the thrower sits or braces and swings the victim to the bank; a second throw ready. Decision point: has the victim taken the line? Continue from shore; a go rescue is not yet needed.
7. Row (technician level). A boat on a tether or under power with the operator and crew certified for it (SWP - Boat Operations), approached from downstream of the victim where the current allows, never from upstream of a dam, a weir or a strainer.
8. Shallow-water contact (operations level). Only where the water is below the knee and the bottom is firm; crossing in a line or a wedge with the team braced; a throw bag downstream; no entry near strainers.
9. Go (technician level). A swimming rescuer in full swiftwater PPE, tethered only on a quick-release harness with a belay that can be released from the shore, entering from upstream, ferrying across the current to the victim; the victim given flotation first; the swimmer and the victim brought to the bank by the tether team or by swimming to the catch point; a second rescuer ready. Decision point: quick release tested this season, belay releasable, downstream safety in place? If not, nobody swims.
10. Tensioned systems (technician level only): a tensioned diagonal or a boat-on-tether rigged under SWP - Rope Rescue Systems Rigging and Inspection, angled downstream, with releasable anchors, and never as a rope across the channel at surface level that a swimmer or a boat could be pinned against.
11. Vehicles in water: approach from downstream; assess stability before contact; the occupants given flotation; nobody enters the vehicle while it can move; the vehicle treated as a strainer.
12. At the bank, victims and rescuers warmed and assessed; contaminated water exposure recorded and decontamination started under Decontamination and Contamination Control Program; rehab for rescuers.
13. Close. Count everyone; PFDs, helmets, tethers and lines inspected and logged; AAR scheduled.

• Rescuer swept away: the rescuer takes the defensive swimming position (feet up, downstream); downstream safety throws; the swimmer releases the tether only if it is holding them under; a second rescuer does not enter unless the safety positions can cover both.
• Foot entrapment: nobody wades to the trapped rescuer; a tensioned line or a boat from upstream; the trapped member keeps their head up on their flotation; technician team or mutual aid.
• Boat capsize: crew in flotation ride the current to the catch points; the boat is not chased; downstream safety throws (SWP - Boat Operations).
• Hypothermia or contaminated water exposure: warming, medical, decontamination, exposure report.

The size-up card and the incident report with the progression used, the safety positions, the times and any contaminated water exposure; equipment logged. Every swiftwater response gets a Tier 1 AAR; any unplanned immersion, any tether that would not release, any capsize, and any near miss with potential for death goes to Tier 2 (Incident Investigation and Learning Program).

Swiftwater job performance requirements at the declared level; a pre-season refresher in moving water every year including the quick release under load and the defensive swim; throw-bag drills twice a year for every member. The Water and Ice Rescue Program Improvement Team reviews this procedure every three years, after every event in section 8, and on any change in PPE, boats or the district’s water hazards; the JOHSC is consulted.

Water, Ice and Swiftwater Rescue Program; Rope Rescue Program; SWP - Rope Rescue Systems Rigging and Inspection; SWP - Ice Rescue; SWP - Boat Operations; Decontamination and Contamination Control Program; SWP - Rehabilitation at Incidents and Training; Checklist - Water, Ice and Marine Operations.

This chapter relies on the following legal requirements, which differ by province and territory. Check your jurisdiction’s section on each topic page before adopting it.

Ontario Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development [MLITSD]. (n.d.). Firefighter guidance notes (Section 21 Advisory Committee; individual notes revised to 2026). https://www.ontario.ca/document/firefighter-guidance-notes