CITYWIDE : $69,254 for River Rescue Team OKd
A Los Angeles City Council panel voted 2 to 0 Tuesday to approve spending $69,254 for training and equipping a team of 24 firefighters to rescue people who fall into the Los Angeles River channel during flooding.
The idea for the swift-water rescue team resulted from the highly publicized drowning in February of 15-year-old Adam Bischoff of Woodland Hills after he fell into the river channel while riding his bike.
Assistant Fire Chief Tony Ennis warned the council’s Budget and Finance Committee that his agency could not implement the rescue program unless it got a commitment from the council to fully fund the estimated $132,000 in staffing costs.
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