2002 Dive Log

2002 Dive Log

November 24, 2002 -Divers bring sunken decks to lake's surface. Members of the San Marcos Area Recovery Team assisted the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers this week by locating sunken docks in Canyon Lake. The docks had been damaged during recent flooding. SMART divers recovered docks at seven different locations on the lake. The recovery of the docks was part of an ongoing clean up project. "SMART does much more than assist law enforcement agencies with underwater crime scenes and recovery," said SMART diver Dan Misiaszek. "We also volunteer to do community projects such as this lake cleanup." With the use of a large crane, divers connected belts and hooks to raise the sunken and partially submerged docks. The damaged dock pieces were lifted onto a trailer and hauled away for repair or to be discarded. There were seven boat docks and gangways at seven separate locations that were damaged by flooding. Some had floated back to shore or came to rest on top of each other. "We ended up doing two snorkel dives and one scuba dive to assist in placing the winch straps on the gangways for the crane to lift. All the rest could be done wading or standing on the docks," said Misiaszek. There were no mishaps or problems reported during the cleanup. "Today's operation was a success," said Travis Motal, Army Corps of Engineers Park Ranger and operation coordinator. 02-1121-09.

August 3, 2002 - Recovery operation turns into live underwater rescue. 02-0803-08
16 year old survives underwater SCUBA rescue after being trapped beneath Cummings Dam (Hays County, Texas)
Read the STORY in the Austin American Statesman and San Marcos Daily Record.
See photographs in our Photo Gallery's Recovery Operations section.
See a FEATURED ARTICLE by William Hendryx in the April 2003 edition of Reader's Digest Magazine "Drama in real life - Swept Away" on this rescue of Dustin Kilgore.

July 21, 2002 - Under increasing pressure from residents and local businesses to reopen the Comal River to recreational activities after the 2002 flood, the City of New Braunfels calls SMART to survey a 1-1/2 miles stretch of the river for debris. "The city officials wanted to make sure the underwater area was free of large debris that could present an entanglement hazard to swimmers and tubers.". SMART Divers spent three hours in the water and video taped the riverbed while city officials with the Parks & Recreation Department watched on topside monitors. SMART removed some branches, broken PVC pipe, two lawn chairs, a broken mirror, and waterbed mattress from the area. See photographs in our Photo Gallery's Recovery Operations section. 02-0721-07

July 11, 2002 - The US Army Corp of Engineers at Canyon Lake call upon SMART to survey and inspect the flue area of the controlled release gates below the dam after the worst flooding in 45 years where water went over the spillway at the dam. This hydraulic action of the spillway combined with water being released from the flue cause a collapse of the rock and earth around the flue. There was damage as topside team members John and Tammy Moseley prepare underwater video and communication equipment. Divers Don White and Dan Misiaszek wearing full environmental protection dry suits and underwater communication gear entered the chocolate milk water to inspect the damage. Using an infrared Seaview Video Technology live feed video camera, the divers discovered a large amount of debris in the flue area that must be removed. In some areas the rocks, metal , and tree limbs are stacked over 12 feet high. See photographs in our Photo Gallery's Recovery Operations section. 02-0711-06

April 30, 2002 - In one of SMART's most successful dive operations to date, divers recovered a chrome .357 magnum from lake Braunig, a weapon which is believed to have been used in a recent capital murder at a Sac & Pac convenience store in San Antonio on April 21st. San Antonio Police homicide detectives contacted SMART to search an area of Lake Braunig in South East San Antonio off a pier where there investigation led them to believe the murder weapon had been discarded. Using underwater communications, video, and a metal detector, divers discovered the handgun in 15 feet of water, and 87 feet from the end of the dock. The search took 67 minutes before the chrome .357 handgun was found, preserved, and recovered. "This is one of our most successful operations ever. We combined infrared video technology, an underwater metal detector, and a standard search pattern in water as dark as chocolate milk. Visibility was absolute zero. We were able to find the needle in the hay stack and successfully recover a weapon used in a capital murder. The success of this operation speaks very highly of the dive team and its membership. San Antonio police detectives were very pleased with the find and recovery and further stated that a warrant for capital murder on the suspect is imminent. After the weapon was found, SMART divers marked the location with a floating marker while an evidence technician from the San Antonio police took pictures and measurements from the pier to the exact location of the gun. The gun was then sealed with the barrel positioned up in a water tight container and brought to the surface. Sealing the weapon in a water tight container prevents rust, preserves trace evidence, and reduces deterioration of the weapon if it had immediately exposed to air. "The weapon will be brought to a crime lab still sealed in the container where it will be removed and rapidly dried. The evidence technician will then process the gun for fingerprints and conduct ballistic testing. It is a common myth that finger prints, barrel contents, and gun powder residue are washed away in the water. This simply is not true. With proper handling and drying in a crime lab, physical evidence can still be recovered from the gun. 2002-0430-05 See photographs in our Photo Gallery's Recovery Operations section. **UPDATE: On Feb 20th 2003 Robert Espinoza was found guilty of Capital Murder and sentenced to life in prison.

March 7, 2002 - A fully loaded construction trailer being towed by a truck on Loop 337 in New Braunfels, flips off a 50 foot bridge during high winds and lands in the Guadalupe River below. The trailer is quickly recovered and SMART is called to recovery the trailer contents. Diving in 7 to 14 feet of water, divers recover tools, sheet metal screws, spools of wire, a ladder, and 40 metal sign panels sized 2 feet X 14 Feet each. See photographs in our Photo Gallery's Recovery Operations section. 2002-0307-03.

February 22, 2002 -On Thursday, February 20, 2002, Joseph P. Bustamante and his friends Susan Gerardo and Daniel and Fernando Reyna, all in their 20s, were boating on Canyon Lake when a cold front blew through and lashed the lake with choppy waves whipped up by 45 mph winds. The boat capsized in the middle of the lake, and the four clung to it, intending to ride with it as the wind blew the boat to shore. The boat’s dragging anchor was then caught on the craggy, tree-tangled bottom and stopped the boat just short of the shoreline. Bustamante didn’t manage the swim to shore. SMART is called to search for Bustamante near Comal Park. As the divers worked, Sheriff’s Patrol Capt. Ed Whitson and public affairs Cpl. Tim Kolbe monitored the situation from shore. Minutes after the search began, the news came over the sheriff’s radio net: “We have a recovery.” Kolbe said the divers had gotten on the water at 10:48 a.m. The recovery came at 11:23 a.m. in 35 feet of water, where Bustamante was found wedged between the cliff and an underwater tree where he had settled. 2002-0223-02 See photographs in our Photo Gallery's Recovery Operations section.