DELAWARE STATE POLICE SCUBA TEAM
The Delaware State Police SCUBA Team consists of eight troopers who have completed the U.S. Navy SCUBA Training Course in Panama City, Florida. The unit is under the leadership of Lieutenant Joseph P. Aviola, Jr. The SCUBA Team is responsible for search, rescue, and evidence recovery dives throughout Delaware. In addition, the unit has assisted departments in Maryland and Pennsylvania that do not have SCUBA units. The dive missions vary from the search and recovery of drowning victims, to the search of ship hulls in the Port of Wilmington for drugs and explosives, to dives to recover vehicles, evidence or stolen property.
In 2005, the Delaware State Police SCUBA Team conducted fifty six dives. In addition to these dives the SCUBA Team taught the Swimming Survival Course to the recruit class for the sixth consecutive year. This course teaches the novice swimmer that they can swim a short distance to save themselves or others. The SCUBA Team was able to allow Troop 3 Explorers’ Post members, Trooper Youth Week cadets, Kent County Cub Scouts, and Camp Barnes campers to experience SCUBA diving first hand. The SCUBA unit continues to support Delaware Special Olympics by providing safety divers for the Polar Bear Plunge in Rehoboth Beach each year. The unit also provided safety divers for an open water rescue drill in Dewey Beach in which the United States Surgeon General attended.
Two significant dive missions were conducted during the 2005 year. The first was a three day dive recovery mission for a missing pilot and his plane that plunged into the Delaware Bay after a mid air collision with another plane. On the twenty-second dive of the three day search, divers located the pilot and plane on the floor of the Delaware Bay. The second significant dive was a property recovery dive for the Maryland State Police. Delaware and Maryland detectives were conducting an investigation in which two individuals had stolen a fully equipped Maryland State Police duty belt and holster with a loaded service weapon and an 800 MHz radio from a patrol vehicle. Detectives were led to a retention pond in Newark, Delaware, which was checked by Delaware State Police divers. After a two and a half hour search the stolen property was located allowing the detectives to fully prosecute the two suspects who were responsible for the theft.
The 2005 year also marked the retirement from the Team of a long time member and the Team’s OIC for the past 20 years. Captain Robert Hawkins retired as an active member of the SCUBA Team to spend more time with his family. Captain Hawkins’ leadership will be deeply missed.
As in past years the members of the SCUBA Team look forward to another year of service to the Division, other law enforcement agencies, and the citizens of the State of Delaware.
