Domestic Stories

MAN OVERBOARD PROCEDURES

Sailing onboard a Canadian warship is not without its risks.  Extreme weather conditions, operating heavy equipment, and conducting physically arduous activities all pose their own unique challenges.  Consequently, the Navy has a rigourous training and safety programme designed to mitigate any danger.  However, when accidents do happen, there are comprehensive procedures that are designed to resolve the situation as quickly and effectively as possible.

VERIFICATION MUSTER

Although extremely rare, a man overboard situation is still a real possibility and one that all ships routinely train for.  There are two methods of determining if a crewmember has fallen overboard: if the person is actually spotted in the water or if they cannot be located onboard the ship.   If there is reason to suspect a member of the ship’s crew is missing, the ship will conduct a verification muster.  This rapid roll-call identifies and locates every member of the crew within at most 15 minutes, although usually happens much quicker.  If a sailor is missing during the verification muster then the crew will commence a shipboard search.  If the individual still cannot be located, then a more thorough search is undertaken.  If this step does not locate the sailor, then it is assumed he has fallen overboard and the ship goes to “Rescue Stations.” However, these activities do not necessarily happen in this exact order. The Commanding Officer may bring the ship to Rescue Stations at any time during this process.

LIFE BUOY SENTRY

Additionally, whenever a ship is at sea, a life buoy sentry is on duty at the stern.  Essentially, the life buoy sentry stands at the rear of the ship and monitors the water for anything out of the ordinary, although his or her primary responsibility is listening and visually scanning the surface for signs of a man overboard.  If the life buoy sentry suspects that someone is in the water, the man overboard alarm is immediately sounded.  This alarm brings the ship and crew to “Rescue Stations,” and sets into motion a sequence of events aimed at locating and rescuing the man overboard.

RESCUE STATIONS

A number of concurrent activities take place when a ship comes to Rescue Stations.  The life buoy sentry will immediately toss a strobe light marker that emits a dye, and a life preserver, known as a Kisby ring, into the water where he or she has spotted the sailor overboard.  In addition to raising the alarm, the life buoy sentry stays in visual contact with the individual, and the ship will manouevre into position.  Simultaneously, a ship’s boat is launched with a diver onboard.  The rest of the ship’s diving team get dressed in their wetsuits in anticipation of further requirements and the ship’s medical organization prepares for a casualty. All this activity is complete within six minutes of the ship coming to Rescue Stations.  If the victim is located, then recovery efforts proceed quickly and the person is quickly brought onboard the ship and receives medical attention. 

SEARCH

However, if a man overboard is suspected but there is no visual confirmation that the missing sailor is in the water, then the ensuing search becomes a methodical process that may involve the ship’s helicopter, nearby vessels and assets called in specifically to aid in the search.  This type of search may take hours and even days; unfortunately, in some circumstances, the missing individual may never be found.

Although the Canadian Navy actively trains to compensate for the dangers inherent in this profession, accidents still happen. When they do, there are detailed and effective procedures to respond to these events. The Navy takes the safety and welfare of its sailors very seriously.

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