Special Operations

Special Operations Division

The Special Operations Division, also known as “Special Ops” or “S.O.D.” is responsible for providing the citizens of Olney, Ashton, Sandy Spring, and surrounding communities with personnel specially trained to handle advanced rescue situations such as swift water, high and low angle rope rescues, brush-wildland firefighting, and as soon as funds are available, animal rescue.

The Special Operations Division currently operates three rescue boats, this includes Boat 704, a 1995 15 foot inflatable rescue boat with a 40 hp Johnson Outboard Tiller motor, Boat 704-Bravo, a 1990 10 foot inflatable rescue boat, and Airboat 740, a 2008 16 foot aluminum airboat with a GM Marine 360 engine capable of 375 hp.

In addition to the boat fleet, Special Operations also provides US Forest Service trained and certified personnel to staff Brush 740, a 1997 Ford F-350 Super Duty pick up chassis equipped with a 200 gallon booster tank, and a 350 GPM skid mounted pump.

Future S.O.D. equipment includes a replacement for Boat 704, with a 14.5 foot flat bottomed inflatable rescue boat called a “Sled”. With its flat bottom, and jet drive motor this boat will better operate in swift and flood waters than the current inflatable.

In addition to the “Sled”, an ATV is being designed to assist SSVFD with special events such as Horse Shows, Sporting Events, and the Montgomery County Fair, all of which the department provides E.M.S. coverage for throughout the year. In addition to providing E.M.S. coverage the A.T.V. will also be able to be set up for suppression duties on brush fires in and around the area.

S.O.D. members certified as Swift Water Rescue Technicians operate at 1901 Brighton Dam Rd. to rescue a motorist stranded in the swift flood waters of the Hawlings River. This call was dispatched in the early morning hours of December 26, 2009. Photo By Mike Kelley

S.O.D. members practice ice rescue techniques with members of the Cabin John Park Vol. Fire Dept. and Montgomery County R.R.A.T.S. (River Rescue & Tactical Services Team)

S.O.D. members certified as Wildland Firefighters hold an annual Brush-Wildland Training Field Day to pass on their knowledge and expertise to firefighters from other departments around Montgomery County. These members are certified through MD D.N.R. and the U.S. Forest Service as “Red Carded” Firefighters.

S.O.D. members practice deploying emergency fire shelters. These shelters are required safety equipment that must be worn on large brush or wildland fires. Should a firefighter become trapped by fire, they would deploy these shelters as a last resort for survival. Each member has to be able to deploy the shelter in under 30 seconds. Pictured here are practice shelters made of a tarpaulin material, real shelters are made of several laminated layers of foil, silica, and fiberglass.