Sacramento Metro Fire - 6th annual "Operation River Safe"

METRO FIRE’S 6TH ANNUAL "OPERATION RIVER SAFE" TO KICK OFF ON MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND

Rancho Cordova, Ca- Sacramento Metro Fire will kick off its 6th annual "Operation River Safe" program located in Rancho Cordova Saturday May 23rd at 10.00 am at the Sunrise foot bridge on the south side.

Due to an unfortunate incident in the year 2004, Metro Fire started a program called "Operation River Safe". The tragic incident involved a 12-year-old Rancho Cordova boy, swimming in the American River over the 2004 Memorial Day weekend. The boy was swimming with his family for the better part of the day, “with his life jacket on.” It was when he removed his life jacket and attempted to swim across the river while snorkeling that his family lost him in the swift currents of the American River.

Operation River Safe is set up over the three major holidays in the summer: Memorial Day, 4th of July, and Labor Day. With the donations from UC Davis trauma and outreach program and Kaiser Permanente, we purchase numerous life jackets at a significantly discounted price from Diversified Marine.

Metro Fire employees along with our CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) members staff a table at the raft launch located on the north and south side of the Sunrise footbridge. The life jackets are not only loaned out to citizens recreating on the water, but we also ensure that each life jacket fits each citizen correctly. A life jacket must fit the person properly in order for it to work effectively. That is why we have such a large assortment of sizes. Near the end of the day, Metro Fire employees and CERT members go down to Goethe Park and at the end of Harrington way and remind people to return the borrowed life jacket.

The Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District wants to remind our citizens to always wear a life jacket whenever you enter our waterways, watch out for each other, and never leave a child unattended around any water source, not even for a second.