Originally Posted by
Unregistered
Do we have a contract with FWC to cover the majority of waterways in Pinellas County? It just seems that anytime there is some kind of call on the water that the Marine Unit's first question is "Check with FWC and see if they have a boat in the water." It seems as if anything in Tampa Bay, much of which is our area, is on it's own if FWC doesn't have a boat in the water. I haven't heard any Marine Unit activity anywhere down by the Sunshine Skyway unless a person has dove off the bridge. And even then it's never just, "we are 51." It's a bunch of questions. So basically if the Marine Unit is hitting anything it's pretty much south of Clearwater and north of St. Pete Beach. Hell, TI's boat gets more action that the ten or so Marine Unit Deputies we have. I'm sure the long lunches and the slow boat washdowns at the end of the day account for the lack of "Ten Fifty Bravo" we used to hear more often. They probably start their day from home and count the BS traffic stops they pull on their way in as time worked. Can patrol start asking FHP to send a unit to a call that's too far away for us to drive to also? That's pretty much what the rule in Marine is and it apparently is okay.