Plans are underway for the Second Annual Newtown Underwater Search And Rescue (NUSAR) Dive-A-Thon.

The local volunteer search and rescue dive team will be returning to Eichler’s Cove on September 23, when they hope to beat last year’s inaugural total of nearly $14,000. The team is planning to dive from 10 am until 6 pm.

Donations before, during and after this year’s fundraiser will be earmarked to improving the team’s headquarters. NUSAR hopes to add a larger bay, which would allow faster dispatches in emergencies.

Sponsors are invited, and early sponsors will be noted within the event program book.

Contact NUSAR Assistant Chief Dr Mike Cassetta at 203-650-1682 or info@nusar.org.

The full NUSAR team participated in the inaugural dive-a-thon last year, with 15 participants diving in four rotations for eight hours. Divers did shore sweeps searching for small objects including a bicycle and a mannequin that had been thrown into the water for them to find. Many dives NUSAR is called for are to seek submerged objects such as motor vehicles.

Each dive was roughly 20 minutes. Casetta said visibility for divers was about three to four feet underwater.