Paul V. Fraser III

2116 Titan St

Harvey, La. 70058

Cell:504-382-1097

For the last 15 years I have been working in the New Orleans, La. area as a paramedic. Last full time street position was as the Operations Manager of Guardian EMS in New Orleans, La. Currently I am working in the motion picture industry as a movie medic and water rescue specialist. I am currently a Professional Association of Dive Instructors (PADI) Scuba Instructor, a Public Safety Diving Association and Water Rescue Inc. (PSDA) Instructor as well as a Swift Water / Flood Rescue Instructor.

Water Rescue Instructor for SELA-TF1 (New Orleans, La. USAR Team, region 1)

On air expert for MSNBC during their coverage of the Minnesota Mississippi River Bridge collapse as well as a recent public safety dive “rescue” attempt in Nashville, Tn. (2/9/08)

The only local New Orleans paramedic recognized in Washington D.C. for rescues and evacuations conducted on the water and by helicopter immediately following Hurricane Katrina. (Star of Life Award 2006)

In just May and June 2006 taught 25 public safety agencies the Swift Water / Flood Rescue Program. 300 certifications issued.

Water rescue, medic and public safety diving services-

2008 Final Destination IV 3D, Avery Pix Productions- Movie production -Scuba Instructor to principal performers, water rescue. Construction Paramedic.

2008 The Librarian 3, Voltage Pictures - Television movie production - water rescue

2008 Nike Shoes, MJZ Productions- Michael Jordan Principal Performer – Set Paramedic

2007 Sheryl Crow, “Free Love”- Music Video- River Consultant, Set Paramedic

2007 Racing For Time, Life Time- Television movie production- Set Paramedic

2007 Spring Break ’83, Big Sky Productions- Movie production- Diver, Set and Construction Paramedic

2007 K-ville, K-Ville Productions- Television production Stunts utility diver 1 episode, water rescue 3

episodes, picture boat operator 2 episodes, camera boat operator 1 episode, principal

performer (as body recovery diver) 1 episode, construction paramedic

2007 Jack Ass II, MTV Productions- Movie production- Rescue diver for Manny Puig and for Steve “O”

during shark shoot. Yes, actually in the water.

2006 DeJa Vue, Already Seen Productions- Movie production- Diver, Water Rescue Stand-by- Picture

boat operator, utility boat operator

2006 Factory Girl, Genius Productions- Movie production- Stunts utility diver, Water Rescue Stand-by

2001 SBI intl., OLM Network – Live sporting event- Responsible for entire water rescue operations for

International Super Boat Championships in New Orleans, La.

2007 Water Rescue drill evaluator for Jefferson Parish Emergency Management on Lake Pontchartrain,

Metairie, La.

2006 FEMA Water rescue exercise – Only private entity allowed to participate during disaster training on

Lake Pontchartrain, Metairie, La.

2006 –Scuba Instructor to New Orleans SWAT Team

2006 – Dive Accident Consultant to the family of the U.S.C.C. Healy accident that claimed the lives of

two divers off of the coast of Alaska .

2005 SpingEx – FEMA Mass Casualty exercise Lake Pontchartrain Metairie, La., recorder

2005 Public Safety Dive for Louisiana Wild Life and Fisheries

2004 Public Safety Diver for New Orleans Fire Department

Water Rescue Instructor Delgado Community College 2007, New Orleans, La.

Adjunct Instructor Galveston Police Dive Academy 2007, Galveston, Tx.

Scuba Instructor for Loyola University 2001-2008

(not 2006, program closed after Katrina, reopened this year)

Scuba Instructor for Central LaFourche High School 2002-2005

EMT Instructor Delgado Community College 1993-1995

First Aid / CPR Instructor American Heart Association and American Safety and Health Institute

Oxygen Provider Instructor Dive and Rescue New Orleans, PADI Distinctive Specialty

Brain Trauma Instructor Brain Trauma Foundation

Hazmat Instructor (Awareness) Guardian EMS, New Orleans, La.

Defensive Driving Instructor VFIS

In magazines or articles such as:

Divers Alert Magazine (DAN)

Technical Rescue Magazine

Louisiana Film and Video Magazine (2005 and 2007)

Winston Churchill Water Rescue Management

Instructor Qualifications:

PADI Scuba Instructor

I received this certification in 2000 after completing my IDC and IE in Hollywood, Florida. Since then I have completed a few hundred certifications. To be honest, I have never been very numbers driven. I taught scuba diving as a means to escape from my regular job. I surpassed my numbers to become a MSDT many years ago. However, as an independent instructor teaching for shops that were not “PADI Dive Centers”, the lack of support provided by PADI and the lack of interest in addressing concerns brought to them by me left me lacking an interest in giving them more of my hard earned money for one more certification. As an independent instructor I taught for 3 shops at the same time. I never needed the rating and it didn’t mean I could do anything different.

PS Diving experience

After being approached by the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office to train their divers at the PADI open water diver level I researched PS diving and found Mark Phillips. He is the Author of PS Diving, the current manual utilized by the PDSA. He brought me up to the instructor level and I have taught public safety diving to representative of various agencies including I.C.E., Louisiana State Police, New Orleans Fire Department and others. Again, since my biggest motivation was not to make money or gain huge certification numbers, many of the classes I taught were on the side.

I have taught Public Safety Diver Training to representatives of these agencies:

Louisiana State Police

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (I.C.E)

Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Department

Terrebonne Parish Sheriff’s Department

New Orleans Fire Department

Jefferson Parish Fire Department

West Jefferson EMS

New Orleans EMS

I have also taught with Mark Philips at the Galveston Police Dive Academy.

For a few years until my hiring as Operations Manager after Hurricane Katrina I had a private dive team of about 12 guys, all PSD certified. We conducted various volunteer exercises for the New Orleans Fire Department or Wild Life and Fisheries when the local municipal dive team preferred not to dive for various reasons. We also did grunt work as well.

Swift Water /Flood Rescue (SWFR)

I earned my SWFR instructor rating straight from the most experienced SWFR instructor in the world, Jim Segerstrom. He founded the course and taught it to thousands of people in 11 countries since creating the program in 1979. My practical lessons were learned on the Natahala River, North Carolina with other instructors from across the United States. I then interned under Jim for a few hundred students during the summer of 2006. After being released I voluntarily put myself under another instructor, Mathew Mauzy, to learn other styles of teaching this subject. He is the Technical Instructor for South Orange County Fire/Rescue Department, North Carolina. He is also a SWFR instructor for Rescue 3.

Since hosting classes on my own I have taught the SWFR class to representatives of over 25 different public safety agencies. Somewhere in the neighborhood of but no less than 300 certifications on all three levels of Awareness, Operations and Technician. The comments on my web site – www.diveandrescue.org are all from SWFR classes taught last year.

You may have read above that I was the only local paramedic recognized in Washington D.C. for rescues immediately following Hurricane Katrina. I was awarded the “Star of Life Award” in 2006 for what really wasn’t much more than what thousands of other rescuers did. At the time I was the Water Rescue Coordinator for SELA-TF1 and was assigned by the EOC to an area of the city that was completely inundated. I participated in waterborne flood rescues with the New Orleans Fire Department. When the New Orleans Fire Department was relieved by Wild Life and Fisheries I then went to Tulane Medical Center and helped organized helicopter evacuations with the owners of the Guardian Ambulance Service. Contrary to popular belief, no it wasn’t Acadian EMS, although they took credit for it. We evacuated the SICU, NICU and PICU. As the deck officer I landed between 5-6 helicopters at a time on the roof of the hospital. Myself and one of the owners were the last to walk out of that facility.

After conducting the evacuation of Tulane Medical Center I went back to the New Orleans Fire Department then to Jefferson parish bouncing around wherever I could help.

After Hurricane Katrina I was then assigned by FEMA to help evacuate parts of Texas before the land fall of Hurricane Rita. After spending several weeks in Texas I came back and was assigned to Plaquemines Parish Louisiana, specifically Port Sulphur where the eye of Hurricane Katrina passed.

In all I remained on duty in one form or another from just before before Hurricane Katrina came on land until my release from FEMA direction in early November 2005.