Ireland
Scotland
Wales
England
France
Switzerland
Italy
USA|
Sep
2
2008
|
Irish Sea Survival Training |
DUBLIN, IRELAND (Team Geared Up) - I had the fortune to attend a Sea Survival training course in the amazing NMCI at the Irish Naval Base in Cork last weekend. The pool has simulated environmental effects including cold water, darkness, rain, wind, waves, lightning - great storm conditions.
They threw us in full clothes and with 2 pairs of overalls on-top to test our life-jackets. After a day of training we moved up to our full survival kit and had a simulated boat abandonment from a rib in the dark into a liferaft.
The experience was daunting - no matter how comfortable you are with it, I really would not like to do this for real - especially with untrained passengers. I didn’t realise how out of your comfort zone you are in a liferaft when everything is cramped, stuffy, and jelly to touch. Ever felt sea-sick in a swimming pool? With this simulator it’s possible.
Here’s some video and photos from the day…
Irish Coast Guard Sea Survival Course from Robin Blandford on Vimeo.
-Robin.
(Image Credits: VF, Crosshaven)
Latest Comments (4):
Wow ! Great pics and videos Robin. What were the groups of 4 people doing paddling backwards ? Is it a more efficient method, and how are they attached ?
Paul
http://www.skiing.ie
Hey Paul,
It’s called a ‘Swimming Strip’ and it’s how you move to a liferaft without loosing somebody in waves.
You can also drag an injured person with your ankles which worked very well.
-Robin.
It sure is interesting Robin. It looks like a good course.
i’m a sucker for men in uniform! nice one, robin!
Post A Comment:
RSS feed for comments on this post. TrackBack URI