RESCUE TRAINING -- A couple of dummies yesterday drove a Police car off the dock at HMS Malabar while six officers -- clad in wetsuits -- stood casually by watching it sink. The exercise was part of the Police Service's dive unit regular training. The store-window mannequins rode the derelict cruiser -- which had been cleaned of fuel and oil -- to a depth of about 35 feet before coming to rest upside down at the bottom. Police divers then dove in to practise retrieval techniques. Diving instructor P.c. Paul Watson stressed the 16-member team is not a life-saving unit, rather a recovery team used extensively in retrieving articles from scene of crime, stolen cycles, as well as submerged vehicles. Another team of divers plan to retrieve the car next week. "We always try to make the exercise as realistic as possible,'' he said. Once on the bottom divers -- equipped with an underwater communications system built into their masks -- ensure the vehicle is stable before running through entry techniques. Training is given year around added P.c. Watson, with emphasis placed on safety. Meanwhile anyone who finds themselves in a similar situation should get out of the car as quickly as possible, he added.

The dummies, despite their watery ordeal, appeared non the worse for wear.