Grab Bags

[Woods Designs]

if the worst should happen...
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Grab Bags

We sent off a Mayday while cruising in the Pacific off the S Mexican coast. 30 years ago the Robertson's and Bailey's spent weeks awaiting rescue in the same general area. But, thanks to modern communications, we were picked up after only 10 hours.

So even when cruising in more remote areas you are unlikely to spend long in a liferaft; furthermore you are probably going to be picked up by a helicopter rather than a ship.

Thus there seems little point in preparing a big grab bag full of food and water. Instead you should have several small bags that are strong enough to survive a trip up into a helicopter. We used cheap pvc bags that proved both durable and watertight. Buy the biggest you can get, ours were about 50L each. Ensure they have strong loops to attach ties. Crewsaver is one of several companies that make suitable bags.

We initiated our Mayday at 2pm, and we were told that rescue was predicted to be at dawn. So, when we were unexpectedly helicoptered off Eclipse at midnight, we weren't ready! We left a lot of essentials behind, partly because, despite all the evidence to the contrary, psychologically we didn't really think we would be leaving our home.

We first filled our dry bags with passports, money and ship papers. All those can be replaced, and, although essential to get you home, they won't help you rebuild your life.

So what else to take? Things that money can't buy.

Photographs - not cameras; log books and diaries rather than a gps; address books rather than passports; souvenirs and anything else of sentimental value. Don't worry too much about weight, as a good dry bag has a lot of buoyancy.

Incidentally, it makes sense to use them frequently. We'd often used ours to swim ashore with dry clothes to save launching our dinghy, so we were familiar with how to make them watertight. Even so, assume everything will get wet. Placing items into Ziploc bags before putting them into the Grab Bag can help. Make sure the bags have strong ties and that these are long enough to allow you to swim with the bag lashed to your body.

Finally, your life jacket will easily cope with the extra weight, so wear as many clothes as you can get on, who cares that they will get wet!



Stupidly we didn't dress up, and arrived in Guatemala wearing just T shirts and shorts. Shopping for clothes only added to our stress and depleted our emergency funds un-necessarily.


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Taken from my website


Richard Woods of Woods Designs


www.sailingcatamarans.com

[Capt. Terry]

Great insight, or is it hindsight? You never really know what you will do when it comes time to make a hasty decision. I always try to be prepared, as the old Boy Scout motto says, but each circumstance is always unique. Planning for each type of situation, and PRACTICING, will turn a life threatinging situation into a minor inconvienience. I advocate a 72 hour kit! A backpack, on a vessel, a waterproof one, that contains everything you will need to survive for 72 hours. One for each person. Have clothes, blanket, food and water, essentials, knife, light, signaling mirror, etc.
I once surfaced after a dive and found myself alone, 15 miles off shore! I swam to a nearby buoy and climbed onto it! You will be supprised at just what will bring peace and comfort in a crisis! Dive computers, cameras, spearguns, all loose their importance really fast. The greatest possessions I had with me then were my fins and my wetsuit! After dumping all the extra gear onto the buoy, I had to swim for miles to catch the boat! I have NEVER again left a vessel without insuring that someone onboard knows how to set an anchor, and start and operate the boat! Those things that don't kill us, makes us stronger! Capt. Terry

[mikereed100]

So what else to take? Things that money can't buy.

Photographs - not cameras; log books and diaries rather than a gps; address books rather than passports; souvenirs and anything else of sentimental value. Don't worry too much about weight, as a good dry bag has a lot of buoyancy.

Along these same lines, a backup hard drive with digital photos and important files, records etc. Easy to carry and all data is recoverable if it becomes wet.

Mike