Tulsa Fire Discusses Safety Preparations Ahead Of Labor Day Weekend At Zink Lake

Zink Lake is expected to be packed this weekend with people on the water and Tulsa Fire is ready to keep people safe on the water.

Tulsa Fire says it put a lot of thought and preparation into its plan, and it will have extra firefighters and EMS crews on standby to make sure this weekend goes by smoothly.

The Labor Day weekend has just kicked off at Zink Lake, and people are already out on the water.

Andy Little, the Public Information Officer with Tulsa Fire, says it’s a day that’s been years in the making.

“We've been working very hard to make sure that all of our crews are trained up, our equipment is ready to go, and that we can keep Tulsans as safe as possible,” said Little.

Little says the firefighters have been training and preparing for this holiday weekend.

“We have spent some time on the Illinois River, we've spent some time on the actual flume, which was great,” said Little. “Just taking our rescue crews and any crews that are involved with our boats out here. Making sure that they're super familiar with the boats, with all the equipment.”

He says they’ve also learned what techniques work best with Zink Lake and the Tulsa Wave Park since being a man-made structure presents new challenges.

“We've done swift water training, we've done ropes training, we've had just familiarization with boats for newer members,” said Little. “Really just done everything that we can to make sure that we're as prepared as possible for this event.”

Little says, on Labor Day, Tulsa Fire will have eight boats in the water and five additional EMS crews ready to respond if there’s an emergency.

When it comes to families, Little says the best plan is to make sure you aren’t distracted on the lake and that you’re keeping an eye on your loved ones.

“You got to stay off your phone, you've got to watch the kiddos,” said Little. “We would recommend that you would bring friends with you. If you're even a young person, a teenager, or a young adult, bring friends. So that you have people who are keeping an eye on each other, kind of a buddy system if you will.”

If you’re out at Zink Lake and see anything out of the ordinary or anyone who might need help, please call 911.