NZRA River Rescue
Standalone river rescue qualification. Required prerequisite for Grade 3 and Grade 4/5 senior raft guide assessments. Must be completed within 18 months of senior assessment.
Enrolment fee
$150.00
Assessment units
8
Assessment Units
You will be assessed on the following competency areas.
1. Guide Equipment
Personal safety equipment check — all items present, in good order, and candidate knows how to use them.
PFD with releasable tow line
Clothing suitable to river environment
Helmet (whitewater appropriate)
Shoes (appropriate footwear)
River knife (pointed end)
Flip line / long length of webbing
Throwbag
3x Locking carabiners (minimum)
2x Prusik or non-toothed mechanical ratchet
Watch
Whistle (without a wooden pea)
2. River Signals
Knowledge and correct use of river signals.
Stop
Go
Left / Right
OK (Are you OK? / I'm OK)
Swimmers (Multiple)
Whistle for Attention
Eddy Out
Cover / Safety
First Aid
Come to me
Look
Don't know
Last craft
Foot Entrapment
Rope required
3x Whistle for emergency
Flipped Raft
3. Knots, Bends and Hitches
Demonstrate required knots and explain their applications and limitations.
Bowline
Tape or water knot
Follow through figure eight
Figure eight on a bight
Alpine butterfly
Fishermans knot
Double Sheet bend
Prusik hitch
Truckers hitch
Half hitch
Clove hitch
Italian hitch
Over Hand Bend
4. Rope Systems
Anchor building and mechanical advantage rope systems for river rescue.
Raft Anchor (3-point equalising)
On shore anchors (wrap 3 pull 2, basket anchor, no knot)
10 person pull with progress capture
Vector Pull
2:1 mechanical advantage
Z-Drag (3:1)
Pig Rig (4:1)
Discuss loading and max limits
5. River Access
Swimming and river access skills in whitewater.
Shallow dive entry
Enter water from height
Support (mutual support and support lines)
Swim in eddies
Access mid-stream boulders
Aggressive head-up swimming technique
Safe defensive swim techniques
Swim through turbulent whitewater and/or wave trains
Swim a rapid and be rescued with a throwbag
6. Throwbagging
Throwbag deployment, belay techniques, and contact rescue.
Accurately and effectively throw to a swimmer (full length of throw bag)
Accurately and effectively throw a 10-metre recoil
Demonstrate a static belay
Demonstrate a dynamic belay
Discuss selection of access and retrieval point
Contact swim towing (live bait, strong swimmer rescue)
Unconscious victim support
7. Entrapment Recovery
Entrapment recovery and victim management techniques.
Maintain and/or establish victim's airway (stabilisation line)
Perform a tethered swimmer rescue
Contact rescue techniques (victim attachment)
Extract the victim from entrapment with lines
8. Tethered Raft Rescue
Tethered raft/craft rescue techniques.
Connection of rope systems
Correct orientation of raft/craft
Use of communications and effective use of teams
Movement of body to assist with movement of raft