Aside from its annual preparations, the City of South Padre Island will collaborate with Texas Search and Rescue to ensure the safety of visitors during the upcoming Spring Break.
Texas Search and Rescue deploys throughout the state at the request of local, state and federal agencies, offering a wide variety of highly specialized resources which may not be otherwise available, according to its website.
“We’ve got Texas Search and Rescue that’s coming down; they’re providing about 20 volunteers that are going to bring Humvees, trucks that are going to come down, [utility task vehicles] [and all-terrain vehicles],” Beach Patrol Capt. Jim Pigg said during a news conference last Tuesday in SPI City Hall. “They’ll be out there assisting us in any way to move patients off the beach, get them to safety and the emergency medical services that they need.”
Spring Break Texas Week is scheduled from March 9 to 17.
During Tuesday’s conference, SPI officials spoke about the upkeep of the beach, medical services and new additions to the staff.
Aside from Pigg, Interim City Manager Randy Smith, EMS Captain Oziel Garcia, Environmental Health Director Victor Baldovinos, Shoreline Management Director Brandon Hill and Michael Florez, director of marketing, research and analytics at SPI Convention and Visitors Bureau, spoke during the news conference.
After each Spring Break, city officials review the rights and wrongs that occurred during the week and prepare accordingly, said Smith, the former chief of police.
He said they have four times as many police staff during Spring Break compared to a busy weekend.
Pigg added the city will have 16 lifeguards on the beach.
“The fire department will bring additional personnel to cover the busy weekends,” he said. “EMS staffing as well. We’ll probably have around eight lifeguard towers that will be monitoring the beach and then roving units up and down the beach as well.”
Garcia said the department will have a mobile medical unit that will operate 24 hours from March 14 to 16. It will be composed of eight nurses, four paramedics and two doctors.
“We will have an AmBus,” he said. “It’s a bus that’s capable of transporting up to 15 patients. Along with that, we will have nine ambulances with support from the surrounding cities. They will be operating in a period of eight-hour increments to support all events during the 24 hours of operations.”
Pigg recommends that UTRGV students take safety measures when celebrating Spring Break.
“Come down and have fun and stay safe,” he said. “Everyone is going to drink and they’re going to have a good time but just try to not overdo it. Try to not get put into a situation where you’re going to get hurt or be in a situation where people can take advantage of you. There are people that come down and do that. Don’t hesitate to come up to any lifeguard or EMS or [the fire department] or PD. People are here to help. They’re not here to try to get anybody in trouble.”
During the weeklong celebration, students who participate in UTRGV’s Alternative Spring Break will travel to Houston and volunteer at local events.
“Alternative Spring Break is a nationwide opportunity for college students that are looking to make a difference, while enjoying time off from school,” said Vanessa Sandoval, Leadership and Social Change program coordinator. “They take part in a weeklong volunteer service that are means to improve communities and the lives that are in those communities.”
The university is planning to take 10 students to Houston, where they will help clean a state park and file paperwork at a homeless facility, according to Sandoval.
