FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2022
Marshall Community Foundation Grant Supports Dive Team
The Marshall Community Foundation awarded the Calhoun County Area Law Enforcement Underwater Recovery Team (ALURT) a grant for $4,605 to purchase critical equipment for this Sheriff’s Office team. The equipment purchased includes life vests, water safety equipment, and water rescue equipment, which will assist with water rescues countywide and for any emergency agency that needs it. This grant enables Dive Team and Marina Patrol to have life vests available for the community while on routine patrol if necessary; this specific grant was used to purchase life vests for children and infants.

ALURT and Marine Patrol reminds the public that it’s critical that everyone enjoying water recreation have properly-fitting life vests. In Michigan, all children under 6 years old must wear a type 1 or 2 approved personal flotation device when riding on the open deck of any vessel while moving. For more information about boating rules in Michigan, visit www.michigan.gov/dnr/things-to-do/boating/rules-and-regs.

ALURT and Calhoun County Sheriff Steve Hinkley thank the Marshall Community Foundation for this generous grant that will ensure ALURT has the equipment necessary for safe and effective rescues and recoveries on Calhoun County waterways.


What is the ALURT?
ALURT stands for Area Law Enforcement Underwater Recovery Team. ALURT supplements local law enforcement and local fire departments and is the only unit capable of subsurface searches. The team is not a funded unit of the Calhoun County Sheriff's Office, but does act in support of the Law Enforcement Division to recover stolen property, evidence and drowning victims. ALURT also collaborates with Michigan's District 5 homeland security training, which encompasses eight counties in Southwest Michigan. The team also provides mutual aid to those counties if needed. The dive boat provides us a platform from which the team conducts the above-mentioned operations.

The ALURT dive team consists of 24 divers and support personnel. Of those, all are sworn special unit deputies of Calhoun County Sheriff's Office. The team has been in existence in its current form since 1978, when it became a non-profit organization (501c3) and recruited civilians to participate on the team as divers.

What is the Marshall Community Foundation?
The Marshall Community Foundation is a non-profit organization dedicated to improving quality of life in Marshall, and throughout Calhoun County. The Foundation holds permanently endowed funds from a range of donors, and serves as a conduit for special projects and the distribution of grants in support of innovative programs like this one. For more information about the Foundation, visit www.marshallcf.org
For media inquiries, contact
Lucy Blair, Communications Manager for Calhoun County