Let’s face it: Boats sometimes sink. Yes, it can even happen to YOUR boat – despite your vast experience, excellent skills, chart plotter, backup GPS, radar, AIS, fire extinguishers and all the other systems, procedures and equipment you have put into place to avoid that ultimate disaster. The fact is that you might run into a half submerged container in the middle of the night. Or your engine might catch fire. Or your rig might be blown overboard in a storm – and then puncture your hull.
Of course, catamarans are much less likely to actually sink than a monohull. Mainly because they don’t carry around a huge lump of lead in the form of a keel. But, even so, it is wise to be prepared in case the ultimate disaster does strike.
So, if your boat where to sink, what would you need to survive?
There are two important goals you need to consider:
1. You need to survive until you are rescued or are able to rescue yourself (eg. you drift ashore).
2. The rescuers need to find you as soon as possible.
Depending on the circumstances, and how quickly help may arrive, you will need to make sure you have sufficient survival gear:
First, you need a liferaft. If you don’t have one of those you are going to be swimming for a long time! We have a Viking RescYou. Make sure you get it serviced regularly. Make sure it is stowed where you can get to it. And make sure you know how to operate it. When you are buying one, or getting yours serviced, have a good look at one that has been deployed so you can see exactly what is in it.
Second, you need an abandon ship bag. Also known as a grab-bag, ditch bag, ditch kit or flee bag, this is a handy floating waterproof bag that is pre-loaded with some essential survival equipment.
Make sure that your ditch bag is waterproof and that it floats. Many of them are not fully waterproof, which can be a problem if you have to through it into the sea while you are clambering aboard your liferaft.
Essential too that the bag, with its contents, actually floats. Again, test it out, so you don’t have a nasty surprise watching your essential supplies descend to the depths just when you need them most.
I personally use the type of dry bags used for kayaking and rafting. They’re cheap, rugged, and work well.
Once you have prepared your bag, store it where it can be easily grabbed. Don’t bury it deep in one of your long term storage compartments deep in the bilges. When you need it, you need it in a hurry.
Noel Swanson is cruising around the Caribbean in his 42ft Robertson and Caine catamaran. For a full list of all the equipment you need for your abandon ship bag visit his blog: Caribbean Sailing Vacation Click here to get your own unique version of this article with free reprint rights.