Instruction manual

PROFICIENCY IN SURVIVAL CRAFT AND RESCUE BOATS OTHER THAN
FAST RESCUE BOATS
13 3
PFD and nothing to climb onto, tread water. Traditional drown-proofing by
repeatedly lowering your head into the water and floating speeds up heat loss.
Preventing hypothermia
Clothing
Savvy outdoors enthusiasts know that insulating critical heat loss regions
(head and neck, sides of chest, armpits, and groin) forestalls hypothermia,
frostbite, or simple cold discomfort. Layering appropriate fabrics helps preserve
body heat, also. No cotton. When wet it is worthless as an insulator and heavy.
1. "Wick, warmth, and weather." Wear a wicking fabric next to your skin,
insulating layers of fleece or wool, then an outer layer made of windproof,
watertight materials.
2. No cotton; seriously.
Clothing made of modern watertight materials like nylon and Gore-Tex are
good for keeping warmth in and cold water out. However, they require carefully
selected underclothing since the garments may not have built-in insulation. If
flotation materials are not used, then wear a PFD in addition to watertight
clothes.
Flotation
Wear a personal flotation device (PFD). For the greatest protection against
hypothermia, insulate the critical regions of your body with specifically designed
PFD. A vest PFD offers more protection than a collar-type, and will improve your
chances of survival. Insulated flotation jackets protect more of your body than