The Emerson-Franklin Municipality Emergency Services team brushed up on it's water rescue skills earlier this week.

Due to the high water in and around the area in addition to a consistent stream of asylum seekers crossing the border at Emerson since December, Fire Chief Jeff French said it was a great time for a refresher.

"For some it may have been the first time they had taken the course recommended by the province, but for most of the team it was a refresher. We do run motor rescue out of both halls in Emerson and Dominion City, the high water gave us a good opportunity to get our air boat and zodiac in the water," explained French.

Water rescue calls to 911 from the area go to both Dominion City and Emerson. The extra training in water rescue scenarios has been invaluable.

"Years ago, a women fell off the Emerson train bridge into the Red River during a flood season," French recalled. "Then there was the time a border crosser tried crossing through the Red River and got hung up on some trees and brush in the water."

Both the Emerson and Dominion City Fire and Emergency teams have also been called for water rescues outside of the municipality, including places like St Malo beach and Buffalo Point.

"When we are training the number one thing we learn is that the safety of the responder comes first. Other things we learn include how to rescue the victim safely from different types of water surfaces or from ice. If it's an under water rescue, then it would need to be handled by the RCMP. There is actually a lot of details that go into the training and can take up to a week to complete for first-timers," said French.

With recent overland flooding, asylum seekers could find themselves in trouble as they walk across the flooded fields into Canada from the U.S. Over 450 asylum seekers have walked into Emerson from the U.S. since January, avoiding formal ports of entry so that they can apply for refugee status under the Safe Third Country agreement. That agreement requires that people make a refugee claim in the country they first arrived in.

Over 14 people walked across the Canada-U.S. border into Emerson this past weekend, and local Reeve Greg Janzen feels the high water in the area continues to make it a risky venture for migrants.

Both the Dominion City and Emerson emergency service teams were out Monday afternoon, with an air boat and two zodiacs in the water. Training took place at the old Emerson golf course, currently covered in water, located along highway 200 just outside the north east corner of Emerson.