okay when a new crew member reports for duty one of the first things that
happens that as he's made acquainted with the ship's muster list which
informs each crew member of his role in an emergency situation here for example
we see the instruction charts relating to the use of the life rafts we are now
ready to begin the exercise
if an emergency arises at sea the vessel involved sends a distress signal to the
nearest coastal radio station using the international emergency frequency all
ships obliged to carry radio also listen on this frequency the name and position
of the vessel and the nature of the emergency are the most important items
of information needed to ensure a speedy and effective rescue operation the
majority of the crew who in this case are gathered in the mess await
instructions from the bridge additional information about the situation of the
vessel such as weather wind and other conditions in the area can be very
important to the rescue operation the ringing of the alarm bell means that the
crew should go to the emergency station as bringing their lifejackets or in this
case their immersion suits
after a little training these immersion suits which protect against critical
mass of body heat can be put on very quickly
notice that the integrated gloves can be quickly removed if the wearer needs to
have his hands-free even without the gloves water will not get into the suit
the crew are now on their way to the rescue stations the ladder which will
later be used to get down to the raft is here paid out and secured by two members
of the crew when the painter line of the life raft has been properly secured on
board and the order given the lashing holding the raft is released and the
raft is eased over the side
when the remainder of the painter line has been pulled out of the container the
raft is inflated by a firm tug on the line the raft will be fully inflated in
the course of about 60 seconds with minor variations depending on the actual
temperature at the time as can be seen here the raft is equipped with an
automatically deployable sea anchor which is released when the raft is being
inflated and therefore contributes to the stability of the raft at an early
stage in the launching procedure the raft is now maneuvered to the matter
which is already hanging at the side of the ship
the whistling noise we can hear is quite normal and comes from the safety valves
on the raft growing off excess co2 this always happens in connection with the
inflation of a life raft
the positional light on top of the raft which has a built-in blink has already
been activated during inflation of the raft that should be switched off when
not needed the crew now enter the raft with great care despite the fact that
they are wearing immersion suits it can often be very difficult to rescue people
out of the water under the sort of weather conditions normally encountered
in a distressed situation at sea
when all our safety on board the painter line is cut
and the knife replaced in the holder provided
it is now a question of getting away from the sinking ship as quickly as
possible using the paddles supplied in the raft in some situations it might be
advisable to haul in the c.i.a while paddling if it is difficult to get away
from the side of the ship for example in a hectic emergency situation it could
happen that some of those onboard ship might not manage to get down to the life
raft before it is cut adrift the men we see here are wearing their immersion
suits and have therefore greatly increased their chances of survival the
crew in the life raft are well aware of the importance of keeping a sharp
lookout for survivors in this phase of the operation and have in fact already
spotted the two men left behind on the sinking ship the light on the immersion
suit should of course be switched on if visibility is low
to the survival suit is also attached a so-called buddy line so that several
survivors can link themselves together in the water this can be especially
valuable if an exhausted person has to be towed along in the water
in the meantime the crew in the life raft have hold in the sea - and are
paddling the raft towards the two men in the water the raft is equipped with a
rescue line with quite here being thrown out to those in the water one of those
in the water gets hold of the quote and pulls it up around his upper arm the
mine can now be hauled into the raft
those in the water must be got onto the raft as quickly and as securely as
possible
the sea anchor is now deployed again to stabilize the raft and minimize drift
away from the position of the wreck the entrance to the raft is closed and a
lookout posted keeping a sharp lookout is vitally important for a successful
rescue operation so that the exact position of the raft can be signaled if
a plane or ship comes into the vicinity
as a result of the distress signal sent out by the ship the rescue services are
getting on with the most important part of a rescue operation picking up
survivors helicopters like this one have for many years played a central role in
rescue operations at sea partly because of the maneuverability of helicopters
and the use made of modern navigational equipment but also and by no means least
because of the skill of the crew members who pilot the coastal Rescue Service
helicopters
whilst the helicopter is on its way to the scene of the shipwreck we can take a
closer look at what all crew members should know about life-saving operations
at sea
this or a similar instruction chart concerning the operation of the life
raft well as we have said be included in the compulsory training manuals on the
ship here for example we see an American training manual this instruction book is
published by the Danish Association of ship owners and among the contents are a
section on lifejackets a section on lifeboats and life rafts
how to enter the life raft what to do if you have to jump overboard wearing a
life jacket nowadays approve life rafts ought to be fitted with a hydrostatic
release unit the purpose of this unit is to release the raft if the ship sinks so
quickly that there is no time to release it manually this Pelican hook is used in
connection with manual operation of the raft if the ship should sink without a
lying time for manual launching water will enter the release unit through the
holes shown here when the release unit is about three meters underwater it will
be activated by water pressure releasing the raft the raft container which is
sufficiently buoyant to float to the surface is now only connected to the
ship via the painter line of the raft and the so called weak link the weak
link is strong enough to release the raft if the water at the scene of the
shipwreck is deeper than the length of the painter line and weak enough in this
situation to be snapped as the inflated raft surfaces
as mentioned earlier some rafts are equipped with automatically deployable
see items in accordance with some national regulations whether the sea
anchor is automatic or not it is very important during the first phase of the
evacuation when the raft is closed to the sinking ship that the anchor does
not foul some part of the ship in the event of this happening anyway the raft
is equipped depending on size with one or two knives which can be used to cut
loose the sea anchor note that the raft is also equipped with a reserved sea
anchor the knife positions shown here is primarily used to cut the painter line
of the raft that is the line connecting it to the sinking ship in order to avoid
damage to the raft the knife should be returned after used to the sheath
providing
if the raft at some point should capsize it can be fairly easily write it if the
correct procedure is followed the raft should be climbed onto from the water on
the side where the co2 bottle is placed by using the runt of the ladder which is
about 40 centimeters under the surface and getting hold of the right link strap
you can hold yourself onto the upturned raft the raft is righted by standing on
the cylinder bag heaving on the line and leaning backwards the raft can be much
more easily righted if it can be turned into the wind after writing the raft is
best entered on the side where the boarding ramp is situated other people
who might be in the water in the vicinity of the raft should be helped on
board the emergency kit on board the raft contains equipment which can be a
great help to victims of a shipwreck the thermal protective aids can be used to
help people who have lost a lot of body heat due to immersion in cold water the
suit is lined on the inside with a material that reflects the body heat of
the person in distress greatly reducing the danger of further loss of heat
seasick tablets should be taken as soon as possible because those on board a
life raft will almost without exception suffer from seasickness with the
consequent loss of natural reactions and powers of judgment the signalling
equipment available in the raft so vital for the final stages of a rescue
operation is as follows
parachute rockets hand flares smoke signals signaling mirror signaling lamp
and a signaling whistle instructions for the use of this signaling equipment are
found on board the raft as well as in the general instruction manuals on the
ship the raft also carries one or two Baylor's depending on the size of the
raft sponges for soaking up moisture and condensation medicine kits one and a
half litres of drinking water per person 500 grams emergency rations per person
and fishing tackle the top of the raft has trucks to collect rainwater
there is also an emergency repair kit to facilitate basic repairs in the case of
acute damage to the raft it is quite normal today that rafts are equipped
with an emergency transmitter instructions for use are of course also
included no matter what the make of the transmitter the type of emergency
equipment found in a raft is now established by international agreement
based on a wide range of experience
the raft is fitted with a double floor which can be inflated by using the
bellows provided in the raft something which has unfortunately often been
forgotten in connection with shipwrecks over the last few years we would like to
make the point very clear an inflated double floor offered in greater
installation and the majority of sea conditions who make a stay in the raft
are much more comfortable experience now back to the rescue action at sea the
lookout in the raft has heard the rotor noise of the helicopter and it is now
vitally important to signal the position of the raft this can be done as here by
firing a parachute rockets
in clear weather lighting a hand flare as we can see here will make the raft
more visible to rescue vessels the orange smoke signals also found in the
raft are also visible over long distances in daylight in addition they
are a great help to a rescue helicopter trying to determine the best angle of
approach to the world when the rescue helicopter approaches the raft ready to
lift off survivors the roof of the raft should be pressed flat best achieved as
seen here by climbing onto it in some cases it might help to let the air out
of the arc tube here the helicopter crew chooses to use a single lift to rescue
the survivors to avoid an unpleasant shock from static electricity it is best
to let the harness and lifting wire touch the water before getting hold of
the harness from the raft a diagram on the harness shows how it should be
lowered over the head and under the armpits
then the adjustable breast straps should be tightened hold onto this strap or let
your arms hang down by your sides during the lift don't hold on higher up the
harness if this man is doing here as there is in this case a risk of sliding
out of the harness in order to avoid unnecessary dangerous situations do not
try to release yourself from the harness leave this to the crew of the helicopter
when you have been pulled on board in a situation like this when a person has to
they rescue directly from the sea the helicopter will use a double date
this member of the rescue crew here getting ready to be lowered down to the
water is fastened to the same wire as the harness which will be put around the
distressed person
a double lift will generally be used where at all possible as this method
because of the experience of the rescue personnel is the safest and quickest
despite the fact that the use of the rescue equipment shown in this film may
seem extremely easy and straightforward and despite the fact that this equipment
has been greatly improved in recent years and is definitely easier to use
old proverb should not be forgotten