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Commercial Fisheries News
Volume 32 Number 9
May 2005
Fishermen say safety workshop worthwhile
NEW BEDFORD, MA - Despite sunny skies and camaraderie, the mood was serious among the 60 fishermen who gathered here on April 16 for safety training as everyone tried to absorb as much information as possible in hopes of preventing future at-sea tragedies.
It was the first in a series of safety workshops organized by the New Bedford Mayor’s Seafood Industry Task Force and held at the University of Massachusetts School for Marine Science and Technology.
“I can almost guarantee you that we’ll be able to save you if you put on your immersion suit, grab your EPIRB, and get in a raft,” proclaimed Coast Guard Capt. Mark Landry in his opening remarks.
Four stations provided opportunities for fishermen to learn about fire fighting, damage control, and shooting off flares. Participants also practiced abandon-ship strategies.
The struggle to put on survival suits was eye-opening for many. But what many fishermen found surprisingly difficult was leaping into the pool then swimming across and getting into the life raft.
Over the course of the day, nine of the 60 participants learned that their suits would have failed in a true emergency.
“Of the nine survival suits that failed, one was too small, one too big, and seven leaked,” said organizer Rodney Avila. “After talking with fishermen who participated, I think we made a difference, and this workshop will save lives.”
While the next session on May 7 has already been filled, additional workshops are being planned for May 28 and June 18.
The second phase of this project plans to train trainers so that participants can be certified as drill conductors. For more information or to sign up for the next available safety training session, call Avila at the New Bedford Harbor Development Commission, (508) 961-3000. n
Safety tips from the training sessions
Survival suits –
• Use plastic grocery bags to cover your shoes for easier movement into the suit;
• Put on your suit on like this: legs-first sitting down, then weak arm, pull hood up over your head, then strong arm, and, finally, zip all the way up and adjust gloves;
• Cross your legs as you jump into the water; and
• When boarding the raft, have the most agile and fit crewman get in first to help the injured and less fit.
Life raft –
• Familiarize yourself with life raft supplies;
• Prepare an emergency bag for yourself to keep with your survival suit that includes items like an extra pair of prescription glasses, water, wool cap, candy, and medicine;
• Check expiration dates; and
• Learn how to right a raft that lands upside down and practice doing it.
Flares, fire, damage control –
• Shoot off one flare immediately after abandoning ship but save the rest until another vessel or helicopter is nearby;
• Never use an oxygen tank from the First Aid kit to go into a fire to save someone as the tank could explode;
• Get hands-on training to operate Coast Guard pumps; and
• Learn how to use sweatshirts and other common items to help staunch water flow through leaking hoses and/or the hull.
Madeleine Hall-Arber
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