Instruction manual

PROFICIENCY IN SURVIVAL CRAFT AND RESCUE BOATS OTHER THAN
FAST RESCUE BOATS
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to hold on to (plastic containers used for fuel or food storage, pieces of the boat,
etc).
The first objective is to swim (or paddle) as far as possible away from the
ship before it goes under. Ships can suck people under as they sink. Once the
ship has sunk, if you are able to swim or paddle back to the wreckage area, you
might be able to find many useful things floating around don’t need to fight to
keep your head out of the water). Relaxing and controlling your breathing is the
key.
What are your chances to be rescued?
Were you able to send a distress signal? Did rescuers get it (did they
answer you)? Where you able to send your exact location (did you know it at the
time of wreckage)? Do you have any signaling and communication devices? (it is
nearly impossible to find a raft in the ocean without knowing its location if no
signaling (or communication) devices are onboard. Bad weather can also make
searches impossible.
In open ocean if you were able to send a distress message from your boat
and have low range communication and signaling equipment on your raft.
Waiting for the rescue party might be the best solution.
If you don’t expect any rescue team to look for you and you can see the coast
(especially if the wind or current push you in that direction), you might want to try
to make a sail or paddle to reach it.
If you are in the water (swimming with a life jacket or holding onto a floating
object). Unless you are sure that you can swim to shore (the current is not
against you), it might be better to save your energy and stay in place. Each
situation will call for a different action. It is important to think about everything
before deciding to leave the wreckage site.
For example, even if you had not sent any distress signals, it might be
better to stay where you are if you were sailing in an area where other ships
(shipping lane) or airplanes are likely to come to than to sail away to a very far
island you might have seen on a map.
Where to Go
You decided to move, but you are in the middle of the ocean (no coastline
on sight). Where should you go?
If you have a map. (or happen to know where you are and what is around
you), deciding where to go is the biggest decision. It is possible to sail a raft, but
it might be impossible to fight a current or wind to reach the closest island (even
if it’s only 50 miles away), but castaways have been able to drift for thousand of
miles and reach land. Sailing in the opposite direction of a known close-by island
might be a difficult decision to make, but it might save your life. Choose your
destination based on current and wind. Avoid small islands, your chance to reach
them is nearly null. It is better to aim toward a more distant but larger land mass).