Taking up the theme of fishing vessel safety can be a hazardous thing to do in a CFN editorial since it entails walking that fine line between helpfully calling readers\u2019 attention to a fundamentally important topic and alienating them with nagging.\u00a0 However, this month\u2019s \u201cAlong the Coast\u201d column features a particularly pointed example of the wisdom of being prepared.<\/p>\n
So, metaphorically speaking, let\u2019s dive in.<\/p>\n
![\"editorial-SH\"](\"https:\/\/fish-news.com\/cfn\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/11\/editorial-SH.jpg\")
On Feb. 12, Devin Pesce, a 19-year-old who was crewing on his dad\u2019s lobster boat, accidentally stepped into a snake\u2019s nest of trawl rope as it paid out.\u00a0 The rope grabbed him by the ankle, yanked him over the transom, and dragged him beneath the waves into bitter cold water.<\/p>\n
Fortunately for everyone, his father and another crewman managed to quickly bring him up and aboard \u2013 and, when they realized that he had stopped breathing, they had the CPR skills to bring him back to life.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s what good training gives you:\u00a0 The ability to do the right thing fast in an emergency.<\/p>\n
Looking through our archives, we find that we have regularly published safety advice for nearly 15 years thanks to the contributions of Ann Backus of the Harvard School of Public Health, who writes our \u201cFISH SAFE\u201d column, and Fred Mattera, an experienced fisherman and fishing vessel safety instructor, who writes our \u201cSAFE BOAT \u2013 SMART BOAT\u201d column.<\/p>\n
Between them, Backus and Mattera have produced a remarkable body of work, covering an enormous range of subjects.\u00a0 Some are a little complicated, like the physics involved in vessel stability or the chemistry behind deadly oxygen depletion incidents in confined spaces.<\/p>\n
But a lot of the advice is about easy things that everyone who sets foot on a boat can and should do.<\/p>\n
First and foremost, wear a PFD when working on deck.\u00a0 There are less-cumbersome wearable inflatable models available these days.\u00a0 While a PFD may not have helped Pesce, this simple device can keep your head above water in most man-overboard situations, protecting you from sucking cold water into your lungs when the \u201cautomatic gasp reflex\u201d kicks in.\u00a0 The flotation it provides can keep you on the surface long enough for your crewmates to get a life ring to you or for rescuers to find you.<\/p>\n
Keep a knife on your body that you can reach if you need to cut yourself free of entangling rope.\u00a0 Take a good look at your survival suit.\u00a0 Make sure it fits and the zipper zips.\u00a0 Practice getting into it.\u00a0 Stow it where you can get it if you need it.<\/p>\n
Beyond that, much of the safety advice boils down to this:\u00a0 Get good training and drill, drill, drill until your reaction in an emergency is automatic.\u00a0 This particularly applies to man-overboard, abandon-ship, firefighting, and flood-control procedures.<\/p>\n
Finally, a lot of the advice is simple common sense for vessel owners and captains.\u00a0 Set up a schedule for maintaining equipment.\u00a0 Adopt protocols for dealing with icing conditions.\u00a0 Install a reachable emergency shutoff on every winch.\u00a0 Take steps to reduce the risk of flooding.\u00a0 And, be sure that your crew\u2019s first aid and CPR training is up to date.<\/p>\n
We feel strongly that promoting fishing vessel and crew safety is one of the most important things we do.\u00a0 For that reason, we have begun posting archived \u201cFISH SAFE\u201d and \u201cSAFE BOAT\u201d columns in full on our website so that everyone can access them.\u00a0 Visit < \u201cFISHING VESSEL SAFETY COLUMNS<\/a>\u201d, and look around.\u00a0 You might be prompted to take action that one day may save a life.\u00a0 \/cfn\/\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n
![\"CFN_3_14cover\"](\"https:\/\/fish-news.com\/cfn\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/CFN_3_14cover-242x300.jpg\")
Read the rest and much, much more in the\u00a0March issue of Commercial Fisheries News.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n