Text: HM Coastguard

Photos:
Geoffrey Lee,
HM Coastguard
and Ed Smith

Every year, kayakers and canoeists find themselves in danger and in need of assistance from the Coastguard, RNLI and independent lifeboats. Even the most experienced can be caught out.

Minimise the risk

Nobody ever intends to end up in the water but it does happen – and when it happens, it happens fast, rarely giving a person a chance to think let alone call the Coastguard. That’s why it’s important to make sure you minimise the risk in case the worst should happen.

We need to get the message out there that if you’re going anywhere near the water and there’s a chance, no matter how slim, that you could end up in the water, you should be wearing a life jacket.

HM Coastguard recommends that sea enthusiasts should follow these simple, potentially life-saving tips…

Wear a lifejacket

People should steer away from thinking that a lifejacket is an emergency device. It’s by far a kayaker’s best friend on the water and needs to be thought of as a standard piece of clothing – just like putting on a pair of socks….worn 100% of the time. If you go into the sea from your kayak you’re protected, otherwise your chances of survival are greatly impacted.

Worn correctly, a well-fitting life jacket/floatation device will provide a kayaker with precious survival time until help arrives. Advances in technology mean that lifejackets are not the bulky items they once were years ago.

For small craft such as dinghies and kayaks, which are more likely to capsize, it is recommended that you wear a buoyancy aid as an inflated lifejacket may trap the wearer under the upturned hull. However, for larger craft, where capsize is unlikely an automatically inflating lifejacket is appropriate.

If you do find yourself in the water wearing a lifejacket, it will give you a chance to raise the alarm with the Coastguard. These days you can buy ones that are fitted with whistles and lights to attract attention and they also can be fitted with a PLB (Personal Locator Beacon – more on this coming up!) allowing rescuers to pinpoint where you are and reach you more quickly. These devices are now very reasonably priced and readily available online and from most angling suppliers.

PLBs and EPIRBS

A Personal Locating Beacon (PLB) is a small device that is ideally attached to a lifejacket or worn around the neck of the user. When activated it will send an emergency alert via a satellite to our Mission Control Centre who will then relay the information to the co-ordinating Coastguard Operations’ Centres.

Different types of PLBs have different features. HM Coastguard recommends purchasing a PLB with built-in GPS, which alerts the Coastguard to your position.

A PLB without GPS will still alert HM Coastguard that the user is in distress but will not tell us where the distress location is being triggered. When you register your PLB here: https://www.gov.uk/maritime-safety-weather-and-navigation/register-406-mhz-beacons we have all the information we need about your vessel right at hand.

This could save the Coastguard valuable time and allows us to quickly task the most appropriate search and rescue asset to your assistance.

The cost of a PLB is relatively inexpensive now and for as little as £120 you can make a massive investment to your ongoing safety whilst afloat and put your families mind at peace.

Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacons (EPIRBs) are devices which are installed on your boat and can either be automatically activated upon immersion or impact (eg if your boat capsizes) or triggered manually. They send a distress alert to the Coastguard with your position and can be accurate to plus or minus 50m! A basic EPIRB will cost around £350 and one with inbuilt GPS and other functions a little bit more. They’re a small price to pay to have a state-of-the-art piece of kit that could save the lives of everybody on board the vessel should the worst happen.

How to raise the alarm

Once things start to go wrong, they can develop rapidly – in our experience people often don’t even have a chance to raise the alarm. Don’t wait for things to improve – you should inform the Coastguard as soon as a potentially difficult situation is developing. We can never get time back – speed is of the utmost importance. When you notify us, we can monitor the situation and do regular check calls with you to make sure the situation hasn’t worsened.

You can use your VHF Radio, VHF Digital Selective Calling (DSC), a PLB, Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacons (EPIRBs) and even 999 on your mobile phone. All vessels should be equipped with a VHF set and nowadays they nearly all have DSC in-built into the units.

When you make an emergency call to the coastguard from VHF radio you will tell everyone within range what your situation is even if you cannot see them – there might be someone nearby who can help you more quickly.

If you are at sea and only have a mobile phone you will only be able to speak to the person you are making the call to. If mobile network coverage is poor then you might not be able to make a mobile call at all. Keeping your phone dry is absolutely essential. Whether it’s the sea, rain or bait on your hands, keeping your phone working must be a priority. Keeping it in a drybag or small see-through plastic wallet will ensure that your phone remains functional despite the conditions. Above all, make sure you phone is fully charged before setting out. Avoid kayaking alone in remote spots and if going out at night take more than one light. You can always use your light (even from your mobile phone) to alert someone on shore. If reported, the Coastguard will send a team to investigate the source of the light to check that no one is in trouble.

VHF coverage along the coast is generally much better. For remote locations, consider carrying a 406 Personal Locator Beacon to raise the alarm.

Make sure that hand-held VHF radios and fixed VHR microphones are stowed correctly and that they are not inadvertently transmitting – open microphone carriers can render all communications on channel 16 impossible.

If you’re within 30 miles of the coast you should have a fixed DSC VHF, a charged mobile phone, flares, powerful torch and Personal Locator Beacon. Remember, a hand held VHF set is only generally capable of three nautical miles range from boat to boat and five miles from boat to boat maximum because of the reduced aerial height.

If you’re more than 30 miles from shore you should have a fixed DSC VHF, an EPIRB with GPS and 121.5 homing function, powerful torch and appropriate flares. Remember that a VHF radio can only be considered reliable within line of sight, if you intend on going further than 30 miles offshore, additional suitable radio equipment such as MF or HF might be required.

Kayakers are recommended to carry hand held VHF, a PLB for more remote locations, mini flares and a charged mobile phone.

HM Coastguard also welcomes check calls. Give us a call before you set out to inform us of your plans so that we can log them. In the event of someone raising an emergency we have all the relevant information quickly to hand. This could be as basic as the location, number of persons, contact number, what time you intend to be leaving, a secondary number for somebody at home and a brief description of your clothing. This quick and easy check call will assist the Coastguard in ensuring that the right help is sent quickly to your location.

Check the weather and tide conditions

This seems an obvious action that any kayaker would take before going afloat, but it is so important to check the outlook ahead. Often the sea can be your friend when you depart for a day afloat but a sudden change in weather can happen very quickly. A check of the forecast for the following 24 hours will allow you to determine if the weather is going to change significantly, so that you can alter your plans accordingly. Listen to local knowledge and make sure if exploring an area unfamiliar to you that you are aware of the tides and direction of drift.

You can easily check the tide and weather conditions here: easytide.ukho.gov.uk

Above St Enimie, another long pool heralded the next big weir. Here, the river

Shoreside contacts and SafeTrx

A shoreside contact is a vital part of staying safe whilst kayaking. Before you set off tell someone where you are going and what time you’ll be back. Whilst you won’t always be able to give people an accurate time of your return, having someone at home who can raise the alarm plays an important role in keeping you safe. To ensure you can be located as quickly as possible it is worth downloading one of several apps on the market where friends and family can see your location in real time.

The Coastguard recommends the RYA SafeTrx app www.rya.org.uk/knowledge-advice/safe-boating/keep-in-touch/Pages/safetrx.aspx which is a FREE tracking smartphone application for owners and skippers of all types of leisure and small craft that monitors your journey and alerts your emergency contacts should you fail to arrive on time. The app allows you to directly contact HM Coastguard in the event of an emergency and could potentially cut vital minutes off the time taken to pinpoint your location. Signing up to SafeTrx will give HM Coastguard the information that they need – including a description of your vessel, shore contact details, and other relevant information – to get you an even swifter response in an emergency.

Remember, if you need to speak to us, call 999 and ask for the Coastguard.