CHAPTER 11 Safety and emergency equipment
Some of the kit generally categorised as ‘safety gear’ is used on a regular basis. Other items are only brought into action when all else has failed. As such, they are better thought of as ‘emergency equipment’, and the good seaman is relentlessly pre-empting emergencies. Just as he develops an instinctive respect for a lee shore, so he must constantly cast his eye around for danger that may be lurking on board. With regular attention, this capacity becomes as natural as breathing. Classic examples are encouraging good safety practice in the galley such as shutting down the gas supply whenever it is out of use, while regular inspection of fuel-burning systems and ensuring all electrical wiring is well insulated should render fire extinguishers virtually redundant. Requiring crew to clip on before going on deck in bad weather – even just reminding them that if they fall in, it will be a long swim home – reduces the risk of a man overboard casualty and means the ‘overboard package’ hanging on the pushpit will remain unused year after year. Careful
attention to ropes around the deck can save a bight being inadvertently washed over the side to foul the propeller and perhaps initiating a Mayday. The list is without end, but you’ll take the point.
Safety equipment • Life jackets – Some countries have laws about who wears a life jacket, how and when. At the time of writing, the UK authorities still prefer to leave this to the common sense of its citizens. Not so many years ago, the wearing of life jackets was only contemplated when the ship was going down. Solid or pre-inflated jackets were so unwieldy that donning them compromised freedom of movement and sometimes made a situation less safe. Today, leisure jackets (known as Personal Floatation Devices – PFDs in North America) are worn uninflated. They are so neat that they cause no inconvenience at all unless the user is wearing nothing but a bathing suit. Such jackets often incorporate harness attachment points and are as easy to put on as a waistcoat. Many feature a self-inflating bottle, some of which activate automatically on being immersed, giving an unconscious casualty a chance of survival. All have retro-reflective tape for night visibility, a lot carry lights as well, while a hood confers even greater chances of surviving prolonged immersion in a seaway. Life jackets must be stowed where they can quickly be reached, and each crew member should have one allotted, already adjusted for size.
Life jacket uninflated... ...and inflated Safety hook
Times to consider wearing life jackets – Depending on boat, crew and circumstances it is up to individuals to decide on a policy in accordance with their own experience and conscience, but once in place, this must be complied with. Some skippers insist on life jackets being worn by all hands on deck at all times; many demand them only in heavy weather or fog; others ask for them when a harness is appropriate (see page 112). Clearly, any non-swimmer on deck should wear a life jacket at all times and should pay the closest attention to using a harness. The wearing of life jackets in yacht tenders is considered by a number of authorities as an essential, as it sensibly is in most dinghy racing clubs. However, while always accepting that many lives are lost from tenders in rough weather, after dark, and especially after taking on a full cargo of alcohol, there are other times when the mature seaman may feel the requirement to be redundant.
MANUAL OF SEAMANSHIP | 111
Emergencies
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