Life Rafts
Or, "How We Plan To Keep Our Feet Dry"

by Dave and Jaja

	With this precious cargo, Dave and Jaja take safety seriously.

Except for having another baby, watching DRIVER sink beneath the waves in the middle of the ocean is one of our worst nightmares. It's a situation that we hope will never happen. But deep down we know the chance for catastrophe is very real.

In an effort to prepare for an emergency, I force myself to imagine what would happen if DRIVER, while rolling along at hull speed, slammed into a shipping container, or a log, or the debris from a fallen satellite. What if a giant rent is opened up in the hull, and water begins streaming in? What would we do first? Take the sails down? Bail? Find the extent of the damage? Launch the life raft? Have a shot of Cognac?

"All of the above" is the correct answer. If you are a solo sailor, this is the time you might wish you had crew. The next best thing is to hope your bilge pumps are in good working order. The ultimate solution for fast pumping is an engine-driven bilge pump that really sucks it out. (If any one has ever pulled their knotmeter thru-hull sender out of the hull to clean the paddle wheel, then they'll know how fast water shoots in before the plug can be inserted. If that two-second geyser doesn't inspire you to have a sound abandon-ship procedure, then nothing will. The force of cold sea water blasting in through a one and-a-half-inch hole is awe inspiring.)

On DRIVER, Jaja's role, in an emergency, is to gather our three kids, dress them in warm clothes, put them into life jackets, and get them ready at the base of the companionway. (Our 12-volt bilge pumps will have self-activated). The first thing I will do is locate the leak and begin ripping apart whatever is in the way with an ax to get to it (most likely the V-berth). This must be done quickly. The sound of rushing water will be a dead give-away to: A) find exactly where the problem is, and B) how bad it is.

As soon as the boat starts to sink, and the hole is submerged, the leak will become silent and almost impossible to detect. After the kids are taken care of, Jaja will go topsides and drop the sails to stop DRIVER's forward motion. The rest of this scenario depends on how bad the hole is. Fortunately, DRIVER is built of steel. A metal hull is the best defense against dangerous floating debris.

What if all hope is lost and the boat is going down? Abandon ship.

The next procedure is to launch the self-inflating, emergency life raft. On DRIVER, it's stowed in the cockpit, about three feet from the transom. This is an ideal location because it buys extra time. The stern will generally be the last part of the boat to sink beneath the waves. The next best place to mount the raft in on the cabin top.

The worst place to mount your liferaft is on the foredeck. Unbelievably, I have even seen them mounted on the bow, under hard dinghies. If an emergency situation arises, valuable time will be wasted unlashing the dinghy and removing it. If the bow has already begun to sink, the extra weight of a person will aggravate the dilemma. If big seas are running, waves will break continuously over the foredeck--which by now is probably awash. And, if the bow is tilted down, the mast and shrouds will also be tilted forward OVER THE RAFT. If the dinghy is removed and the raft is successfully inflated it will probably be trapped UNDER THE FORESTAY. As the boat sinks the raft could easily get snagged by the forestay and get punctured, or torn. It could even get sliced in half.

Don't mount your life raft on the bow!!!

Our raft is a 6-man, self-inflating type, made by RFD. The model is the "Pacific". We get it surveyed every two years. It's been opened in New Zealand, Australia, and North Carolina and we have never had a problem with service. The raft contains a repair kit, seasick tablets, a flashlight, 3 flares, 6 foil packed food rations, and 6 liters of water. Just enough stuff to stave off death for a day or two. We keep the "old food and water" in our grab bag. (See below)

In addition to these basic, prepacked items, we have a "grab bag" or a "ditch kit". The bag is a large, waterproof, backpack made by L.L. Bean. We prefer this vinyl bag to a solid plastic canister (commonly sold in marine stores) because it has straps and I can wear it. (We also use it at anchor for taking camera gear to shore.) This bag is stowed under the companionway ladder.

It contains: an ARC 406 MHz EPIRB, a 227 MHz EPIRB, an Icom waterproof handheld VHF radio (with spare nicad battery), 6 parachute rockets, 6 hand flares, and a PUR Survivor 35 manual reverse-osmosis desalinator. We also have a rudimentary medical kit. If the boat strikes an object at hull speed, and someone is standing up, it is likely they will get hurt. Our medical kit (in a plastic box, inside the grab bag) contains painkillers, penicillin, sutures, sterile dressings, waterproof tape, and tampons.

We also have over-the-counter medications for diarrhea, constipation, rashes, earache, sinuses, chapped lips, salt-water sores, burns, and muscle ache. Miscellaneous safety items: Leatherman knife, can opener, fishing tackle (handlines and hooks), duct tape, passports, cash and credit cards.

We also have a non-waterproof duffel bag with high-protein high-carb canned food: Condensed milk, evaporated milk, beans, tuna, and chocolate bars.

Last: A five-gallon plastic water jug is lashed in the cockpit next to the raft.

If we have time, we will take our hard dinghy, which is lashed on the foredeck.

Concentrating on "the worst-case scenario" (sinking) is the first step to safety. As you pack up your grab bag it will be impossible to deny the reasons for your actions. You are preparing for the event of abandoning ship. You are thinking about what you will need for survival in a life raft for an indefinite period of time. Reality is a tough customer. With a good raft, however, and a sound emergency procedure, it should be possible to abandon ship successfully. And with enough supplies, it should be possible keeping everyone healthy until rescue.