Emergencies can happen at any time on the water but being prepared is important for the safety of you and your passengers. Most boating accidents are preventable but being equipped to handle emergencies is key to ensuring a safer boating experience.
Common Boat Emergencies
It’s critical to have the necessary supplies in case of boating emergencies. Here are some common emergencies and how to avoid them:- Running out of gas: check your gas levels before venturing out and ensure you have more than enough for the trip planned.
- Dead battery: charge the battery often and check cable connections, ensuring the battery is secure.
- Cuts/broken bones: have a first aid kit available and continue to restock as you use supplies.
- Falling overboard: ensure all passengers wear well-fitting life jackets and are safely seated while the boat is in motion.
- Capsizing or flooding: follow safe driving techniques, stay on top of weather, and evenly distribute the weight of all passengers on the vessel, staying within the allotted weight or number of persons requirement.
- Weather emergencies: the weather can change at any time. Do your best to stay ahead of potential weather threats to prevent injury and damage to your passengers and boat.
- Boat collisions: prevent collisions by operating your boat at a safe speed and be aware of other boaters around you.
- Drowning: Proper-fitting life jackets can be worn while boating to prevent drowning. Though they are not required to be worn for boaters over the age of 6 unless you’re on a personal watercraft, be sure well-fitting life jackets are available for all passengers onboard.
Immediate Steps to Take
In case an emergency does arise, there are several immediate steps you can take to potentially lessen risks. It may take a while before emergency boat services arrive if they’re needed, but safety should always be the first priority. Make sure passengers are wearing life jackets and safely out of harm’s way, then move on to the following basic troubleshooting before calling for help, especially if your boat is still operable.- Kill lanyard: if there’s been a fall overboard, use the kill lanyard to immediately turn the boat engine off. This could prevent the risk of serious injuries and fatalities.
- Binnacle control handle: this handle should be moved into the neutral position to prevent the boat from moving.
- Upper station: if your boat has a second level, or an upper station, make sure that the control handle is also in the neutral position to prevent the boat from moving.
- Primer bulb: if you think you’ve run out of gas check the primer bulb to see if there is fuel being sent to the engine.
- Batteries: if your batteries have died while out on the water you can use a portable jump starter. Be sure to always have one on hand in your onboard safety kit.
- Alarms: depending on your boat engine, most will have an alarm system to warn you of low oil pressure or high coolant levels. If alarms go off simply unhook them to check oil and coolant levels.
