A man-overboard (MOB) situation requires you to not only act quickly, but also understand how to properly manoeuvre your sailboat in very diverse conditions to help you save a life.
What to do in a man-overboard sailing emergency
1. If it floats, throw it in
Even if the man-overboard is wearing a life jacket, it's important to throw plenty of floating objects as soon as you realize someone has gone in the water.
You should be tossing life rings, boat buoys and whatever else floats. This will help you locate your MOB easier and keep them above water during rough conditions
2. Press the MOB button
If you have a GPS unit, it should have an MOB button that you can quickly push as soon as you realize someone has gone under.
Hit this as soon as possible to get the exact coordinates of where your MOB went over. In rough conditions, it's easy to lose track of a MOB. These coordinates can not only help your search, but also rescue authorities if you're unable to recover the MOB yourself.
3. All crew on deck
You might not have many people on your boat with you, but as soon as someone goes overboard, it's important to have at least one person acting as a spotter to keep an eye on the MOB. Everyone else should be working to manoeuvre the boat into a rescue position.
4. Use your engine
In most instances, it's a good idea to manoeuvre into a rescue position by using your engine. Slacken or cut your sails if they are preventing you from going where you want. As you approach the victim, be sure to cut the engine or go into neutral.
5. MOB rescue turns
For many MOB situations, it's important to know different MOB rescue turns, such as the quick turn, a gybe turn, a Williamson turn and the figure-8 technique.
- Many of these manoeuvres are designed with MOB situations in mind, and help you respond to different situations.
- Some techniques are good in rough waters while others are better with small sailboats, so it's important to practice many MOB techniques beforehand in order to reach your MOB as quickly as possible.
Ultimately, having the right equipment and deploying the right boating techniques can help you handle just about any MOB situation properly.
National advertising powered by Mediative.com. Yellow PagesTM, Walking Fingers & DesignTM, YP.caTM, Find. & DesignTM, YellowPages.caTM, Canada411TM and YP ShopwiseTM are trademarks of Yellow Pages Digital & Media Solutions Limited in Canada. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Copyright © 2018 Yellow Pages Digital & Media Solutions Limited. All Rights Reserved.
