Triple R Rescue – Where It All Began
Earlier in the newscast, we told you about Triple R Rescue who assisted gunshot victim Clifford Kirk to go to the U.S. for further medical attention. Jodie Harnish is also an expat living in San Pedro and as we said, she helps to mobilize the non-profit, charitable organization to assist people on Caye Caulker and San Pedro who are in need of response and rescue support. The organisation was formed when American national Rickilee Mercer drowned off the coast of San Pedro in 2017. Harnish says that her family in Texas is raising funds to implement a volunteer-based emergency response system on the island that coordinates both American and local community resources to help protect lives.
Via Phone: Jodie Harnish, Rickilee Response & Rescue
“It was a very, very sad experience for all of us. And from that we wanted to form the Rickilee Response and Rescue and it was formed out of Texas from where her family was from and we flew her back to Texas on her birthday, very sadly. So, we have created this response team. We have the full support of the town board, the tour guide operators association, the tour dive shops, they are all fully involved. It is run by the locals – Billy Leslie of the tour guide association; they have kinda taken the lead with it. So, we have been bringing in equipment so that all the dive boats are equipped on the island. We have established our own phone number which is manned 24/7 , so if somebody calls with a boating accident, which we already had two calls that have been very successful – and know where to send the dive boats out to get the people in a timely fashion. They have been very kind with donations; monitoring equipment; first aid equipment. We even have donation of a transport taxi that will be soon delivered to the island so that they don’t have to go to back of pickup trucks or taxi cabs. So, we are very excited about that, as well as better emergency response and urgent care facility that are gonna be created on the island. And all this came about because we want to save lives. We don’t ever want to get out there and search for them and rescue them. We are bringing in flashlights, radio systems, rescue boats, rescue buoys, life jackets, and first aid kits up and down the island. So, it will all be managed the same way –it will all have the same equipment no matter where you go to assist it will all be the same equipment and the people can all be taken care of from first aid or just a basic rescue.”
If you are ever in need of the Triple R Service while you are on the islands, you are asked to call 627-1117.
