Abandon-Ship Routine ?

[Feral Cement]

Is there a "standard" routine or USCG procedure for abandoning ship? Is there a "best practice" of what to do 1st, 2nd, 3rd?

I'm thinking that everyone putting on their PFD would be #1 in the event you hit a container at 3 a.m. and have 30 seconds to get out.

Insights appreciated..

John

[zeehag]

step UP into life boat....

[rustypirate]

+1 to that....

[captain58sailin]

Standard procedure for abandon ship aboard inspected vessels, is #1 sound the alarm, #2 Muster at a predetermined point with PFDs donned, #3 Count noses, make sure you are all there. After that if varies from vessel to vessel, depending on number of crew ect... We have personnel assigned to retrieve different life saving devices such as EPIRBS, SARTS, Flares, first aid kits etc... each crewman's duties and life raft posting is detailed in the station bill. As Zeehag said, step up to the life raft, many people have died getting off the vessel too soon rather than too late. Once outside of the vessel superstructure, don't go back inside. Me, I enter the life raft as my foot that is on the masthead light gets wet.

[zeehag]

i knew jack sparrow was here......i was taught that is the only way to enter the life raft-- from the mast head as it disappears under the surface of the seas......with boatkat in one hand, and.....

[pullord]

beware the suction dont take you with her if you wait to long and hang close to sinking vessel,,also rigging slaps sideways and will sink your dink/liferaft if close in,,get away before she drop to bottom,,cheers

[Pelagic]

The checklist that Cap58 mentions is a good basic outline that applies to all sizes of vessels and includes additional things like checking crew for sharp objects before they enter the life raft (Murphy’s Law).

I will try and find my detailed training list when I get back home.

The most important thing you need to remember when training crew is that the first order they will hear is:………….“Prepare to Abandon Ship”

That is when the detailed check list is followed and training emphasizes that it is not an order to Abandon!.... until the skipper says so!

Forget the “Step up” motto….. When a decision is made by the Captain to Abandon…Transfer when it is safest

In the case of an uncontrollable fire, I would give that order to Abandon…. sooner rather than later…. but in preparation I would lower an anchor chain down as a submersed belaying point for a long painter to the life raft, in case the boat burned itself out and we could then haul ourselves back.

There is very little that is “routine” about an “Abandon Ship” order by the captain.
(Or any other Marine Emergency for that matter)

The best preparation is to simulate various types of emergencies to test yourself and crew in every imaginable worst case scenario that would highlight you or the boat’s natural weaknesses.

This way you find solutions to compensate and stand a much better chance of never having to give that order

[ozskipper]

Originally Posted by pullord

beware the suction dont take you with her if you wait to long and hang close to sinking vessel,,also rigging slaps sideways and will sink your dink/liferaft if close in,,get away before she drop to bottom,,cheers

The Suction is an old wives or perhaps seadogs tale. Mythbusters tried it. And couldnt get it to happen. Especially with life jackets on.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gFtDK...eature=related

Certainly you need to be away from the rigging, but the suction is a myth

Cheers
Oz

[pullord]

yea, dont n minjd beimg corrected,,get insurance money is main thing ,,chewer5s

[capngeo]

The issue is not suction, but escaping air bubbles lessening the density of the water!

I have had 3 drop out from under me in my time..... no 2 were alike in how I got abandoned! My $0.02 is to look at each boat and form a separate "woopsie" plan for each. Commercial vessels will (should?) already have such a plan and be willing to share it with you!

[Feral Cement]

Originally Posted by Pelagic

The most important thing you need to remember when training crew is that the first order they will hear is:………….“Prepare to Abandon Ship”

That is when the detailed check list is followed and training emphasizes that it is not an order to Abandon!.... until the skipper says so!

Good advice. And as several have pointed out, a swamped but floating boat is better than a liferaft. It is also important to APPEAR to be calm and rational, even if you just soiled yourself - your crew will dial in their own anxiety level based on cues they pick up from the Skipper.

If you bust a through-hull and take on water for hours, it's a lot different than a fast moving fire or collision that calls for an "Out, now" plan.

[captain58sailin]

During our twice monthly drills we emphasize that only the Master gives the command to abandon ship, and if the Master is incapacitated or dead then the Mate gives the order, then the 2nd Mate gives the order depending on whom is still alive. It is very important to make sure the crew is familiar with the mechanics of the process before creating different scenarios in which they may have to respond to. You have to use your head regarding when to give the order, not all situations can be responded too the same way, the reason we are sea folk is because we don't think like other people and we can adapt to different situations as they arise. There is no cookie cutter answer to every scenario, the crew will respond as they are trained, in an emergency situation. The area in which I have spent most of my life, the water is deadly, if you have to go into it even with immersion suits, usually the suits only make the corpses easier to find, and as stated before, they have found more dead people who have abandon ship too soon, and found the vessel floating nearby intact enough to have stayed aboard, which may or may not have aided in the victims survival. My constant sermon is the best plan, is to make sure the boat doesn't sink every day, and if you have to abandon ship, you have already lost the battle, and now you are trying to survive the war. So if we lose the battle you will find me sitting atop the mast head light with the EPIRB under my arm.
I wish I had Capt. Jack's ability for abstract thought. He is my hero.

[boatman61]

Captain58's got it right... you stand prepared and fight to keep her afloat till...as he says.. "the battles lost.."
Unlike land.. standing in the yard and calling the rescue services does not often evoke a response time of arrival of 10-20 minutes..
A liferaft or dinghy is a poor substitute and truth be told... merely an effort to prolong possible survival time till rescue... which may not be in time...
Have plugs, wadding's etc in easy access alongside your storm jib ready for holings... be prepared for the worst and relish the best...

[zeehag]

rescue tape, gorilla tape, seizing wire, extra sails, plugs and toilet seal rings.. all goood to have handy.
boat, even mostly submerged is easier to see from air than a dink.....

[pullord]

Originally Posted by capngeo

The issue is not suction, but escaping air bubbles lessening the density of the water!

I have had 3 drop out from under me in my time..... no 2 were alike in how I got abandoned! My $0.02 is to look at each boat and form a separate "woopsie" plan for each. Commercial vessels will (should?) already have such a plan and be willing to share it with you!

i just put u-tube video in fav list @yachy sinking in brisbane flood 13 jan 2011@ seeing is believing how qiuk ballast took her down and rigging hit dingy,,i always thought that suction thing only applied to large vessels like cruize ships anyways and im sure mythbusters wasnt sinking ships that size for an experiment,,cheers