Ocean Rescue Systems was founded on the principle that most Public Safety department water rescuers were wholly unprepared for the demands of real-life water rescue in anything other than swimming pools or life-guard patrolled beaches. This was mainly due to a lack of thoughtful and systematic analysis of water-related accidents and the hazards they pose to rescuers in situations such as floods, swiftwater, rocky surf-washed shorelines, and low-head dams.