Be Ready; Suit Up for Survival

Details

• Personal Author:
  Backus A
• Description:
  Since we are heading into the cold weather season again, this FISH SAFE column provides a review of survival suit care and preparations for its use along with a step-by-step checklist. Regulations regarding survival suit requirements are complex. For the purposes of this column, we will work from the premise that the US Coast guard currently requires survival suits for each crew person on every commercial fishing vessel operating on offshore waters. National Coast Guard data show that there are two major types of incidents in which fishermen find themselves in the water: flooding/sinking and capsizing; and falls overboard. Survival suits are the safety gear that can be useful in flooding/sinking incidents. Many capsizing accidents happen too quickly to afford fishermen the time to get into their suits and falls overboard offer no time. Regardless of whether a vessel is required to have survival suits for all crew, all fishermen should have a suit. Many, however, are not experienced in how to use a suit effectively. When asked during voluntary dockside inspections by Coast Guard marine safety officers, crewmembers and captains alike all to often reply that the have not tried their suites on or performed an immersion drill. Familiarity with the suit is key to survival. The usefulness of a suit in an emergency is directly related to the condition of the suit, the fisherman's ability to put it on quickly and completely, and his/her ability to transfer a raft or jump overboard and clear the vessel safely. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Environmental Exposure Hunting Occupational Health Personal Protective Equipment Risk Assessment Risk Factors Safety Staff Development Workplace
• Keywords:
  Exposure Levels Fishing Fishing Industry Personal Protection Personal Protective Equipment PPE Risk Factors Safety Culture Safety Education Safety Measures Seasonal Activity Seasonal Factors Training Work Environment Workers

  More +
• ISSN:
  0273-6713
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Massachusetts ; OSHA Region 1
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20062006
• Citation:
  Commercial Fish News 2004 Oct; :12B
• Contact Point Address:
  Ann Backus, MS, Director of Outreach, Department of Environmental Health, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston MA
• Email:
  abackus@hohp.harvard.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2005
• Performing Organization:
  Harvard School of Public Health
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  20030701
• Source Full Name:
  Commercial Fisheries News
• End Date:
  20050630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:622fc4deec031e3bb4609b4c44d925033078065331f328c13d387218b3be9f3577cbdd650f52d8f014a54c73404711c8e0cf510463c61f12a411505a4d57a427
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/225333/cdc_225333_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 369.50 KB ]