Winter Safety Tips From Braintree Fire Department

The has multiple sets of life-saving water rescue equipment stationed across town, but the first piece of advice for anyone thinking about venturing onto the ice is don't do it. And if a hockey game just has to be played, or adventures just have to be experienced, bring a friend to leave on the shore and always carry a cell phone to dial 911.

That call – from or anywhere else with standing or running water – will immediately send Braintree firefighters to the scene with a batch of equipment lashed together atop a metal trailer.

"People are going to go out onto the ice," the department's Training Officer Rich Nigrelli said. "We have different tools in our toolbox to rescue people."

Each station – headquarters by , and s – has a large bundle of equipment on a trailer that can hook up to the fire engines and smaller trucks and SUVs:

– 8-foot Zodiac boat for open water rescue with a 15-horsepower engine.

– 6-foot Zodiac with paddles for ice rescue, small ponds, rivers and streams. It has ropes that can attach to both sides to be strung across a body of moving water.

– Floatable stretcher with a backboard to stabilize the spine. Normally used in boating accidents.

– Ice sled, as pictured in a , to be used by a team of officers, with one going into the water to attach themselves and the sled to a victim and the others pulling them out with a rope.

This equipment is automatically taken when certain alarm boxes are pulled, such as at Sunset Lake. There are also life jackets, ropes, floating tubes and Ice Commander dry suits for the officers to wear.

"It keeps you afloat no matter what and it protects you from severe weather," Nigrelli said.

He also emphasized that anyone even thinking about going out on the ice, no matter how thick it may seem, should bring a spotter with them and also a cell phone. If an animal gets in trouble, always call the fire department, Nigrelli said, because they have the right tools and people have lost their lives trying to save pets.

"Stay away from rivers and streams, they will always drag you right down," Nigrelli said. "Hypothermia will set in real quick."