Flotation Devices News

A new safety alert issued by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) urges vessel owners and operators to provide each crewmember with a personal locator device. These devices improve a mariner’s chance of rescue during an emergency.During an emergency at sea, a mariner’s chance of survival decreases if search and rescue cannot quickly and accurately identify their location. Personal locator devices, such as personal locator beacons (PLB) or satellite emergency notification devices (SEND), can accurately pinpoint a person’s location.

Inquiries began into what caused the disappearance of a tour boat off Japan's northern coast as search efforts intensified on Monday to find the vessel and its missing passengers, with the confirmed death toll rising to 11.The "Kazu I" left harbor on Saturday for a sightseeing trip when it ran into trouble off the Shiretoko peninsula on the island of Hokkaido. The boat was carrying 24 passengers, including 2 children, and two crew members. Only a few orange flotation devices bearing…

A fishing vessel fire and sinking off the coast of Mississippi was likely cause by deteriorated wiring on board, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) determined.The Lucky Angel was trawling for shrimp in the Gulf of Mexico when a fire broke out in the vessel’s engine room on December 10, 2020. The three crewmembers attempted to fight the fire but were forced to abandon the vessel. They were rescued by the U.S. Coast Guard. The vessel sank two days later. No pollution was reported. There was one minor injury.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T), in collaboration with the U.S. Coast Guard, recently released the “Mass Rescue Operations Lifesaving Device Broad Agency Announcement” solicitation seeking innovative technology solutions to respond to mass-casualty events at sea.Innovators, industry, academia and laboratories are invited to submit solutions for a large capacity-floating device to keep survivors out of the water during mass rescue operations. White papers are due by 2 p.m. EDT Aug.

Surveyors from the UK Maritime and Coastguard Agency are to carry out unannounced inspections of fishing vessels across the UK with the aim of increasing safety in the industry after a growing number of fatalities."The inspections are being carried out as part of ongoing work around fishing vessel safety in an industry-recognized to be one of the dangers in the world," the MCA said.According to the Agency, since November 2020, there have been eight deaths – more than ten percent of the total for the previous ten years.

Decades of innovation has earned Wing Inflatables its place among top manufacturers of sponsons, tubes, collars and rubber craft. While the company maintains this reputation today, the Wing Group has also grown beyond it after an ownership switch set in motion a number of major changes that have helped to both expand the company and alter its DNA.In past decades, under the leadership of founder and now-former owner Bill Wing, the California company and its polyurethane rafts and air-holding tubes, and later air/foam hybrid collar, had revolutionized the rigid inflatable industry.

The captain of the World War Two-style tourist "duck boat" that sank on a Missouri lake during a storm in July killing 17 people was charged on Thursday with misconduct, negligence and inattention to duty by a federal grand jury, prosecutors said.Kenneth Scott McKee, 51, of Verona, Missouri, was charged in a 17-count indictment, one count for each of the passengers who died when the vessel sank on July 19.McKee was captain of the vessel operated by Ripley Entertainment Inc, which ran duck boat tours in Branson…

Training and attention to detail saves lives. Kevin Suarez at Statue Cruises is the living embodiment of that maritime metric. For any first time visitor to the Big Apple, the trip probably wouldn’t be complete without seeing the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. To that end, Statue Cruises’ main focus is to create a smooth passenger experience and serve as the gateway to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island for the over 4.4 million tourists who visit both islands annually. Collectively, they run eight vessels that service the Statue of Liberty/Ellis Island routes and two smaller vessels with the Liberty Landing Ferry, which Statue Cruises operates, that runs between Liberty State Park in Jersey City, NJ and the World Financial Center, in lower Manhattan.

The Liebherr offshore crane division has produced and delivered a new manipulator tool with a safety working load of 100 tonnes. Using this equipment is designed to extend the task range of the Liebherr offshore cranes. Liebherr designed a manipulator for its ram luffing knuckle boom crane series to ensure safe, efficient and reliable operation. The Manipulator 100 is able to be used with either hook or crossbar function. The crossbar mode matches any operation – especially to those under bad weather conditions or to emergency operations.

U.S. Two overdue divers offshore from San Jose Island, Texas, were rescued by a U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) helicopter crew Saturday afternoon. The two San Antonio men, Dennis Garrett and Robert Holms, were diving approximately 16 miles off the shoreline of San Jose Island at approximately 10 a.m. when they became noticeably overdue, leading the captain of the dive boat Reel Excursions to contact the USCG on marine band VHF-16 after growing concerns that they were 40 minutes overdue and could not be found.

The Coast Guard and the Port Washington and Cedar Grove Fire Departments came to the assistance of two duck hunters on Lake Michigan Friday. The names of those involved are not being released. A 911 dispatcher contacted Coast Guard Station Sheboygan  at 11:30 a.m. about two men whose 14-foot boat was taking on water one mile north and about one-quarter mile east of Harrington Beach State Park. The two hunters called 911 when their engine stalled and their boat began taking on water over the sides. Coast Guard Sector Lake Michigan Command Center directed Stations Sheboygan and Milwaukee to launch crews aboard their 25-foot and 45-foot response boats respectively.

The Coast Guard rescued three individuals from the water in Tomales Bay, Sunday morning. At approximately 8:30 a.m., Coast Guard Sector San Francisco Command Center personnel received notification that three individuals went into the water just off Lawson's Landing when their raft deflated. Watchstanders coordinated with Coast Guard Station Bodega Bay, who launched a rescue boatcrew and notified Inverness Fire Department of the incident. Sector San Francisco issued a Urgent Marine Information Broadcast for anyone in the area to assist, and launched an aircrew from Air Station San Francisco. Once on scene, the Station Bodega Bay rescue…

The Coast Guard 9th District honored 75 years of service from the Coast Guard Auxiliary in a ceremony at the Coast Guard Cleveland moorings today. What began as fishermen and private boaters reporting sightings of U-boats in American Coastal waters has evolved into the Coast Guard Auxiliary. The Auxiliary was established in 1939 to facilitate the operations of the Coast Guard. Starting out as the Coast Guard Reserve, it was split into a military reserve branch and auxiliary operation in February 1941. During WWII the volunteers provided search and rescue support, patrol and picket duties, port security, and limited aviation patrols. The 30,521 members of the modern day Auxiliary use 3,415 operational vessels, 236 aircraft, and 2,459 communication stations to patrol U.S.

The National Transportation Safety Board’s Earl F. Weener responds to our March 2014 MarineNews BY THE NUMBERS feature, entitled “Passenger Vessel Safety Record Defies NTSB Hit List.” The NTSB Board Member takes issue with the inference that their scrutiny of the record of passenger vessel safety is misplaced and should be better directed elsewhere. Naturally, we still think otherwise. Each year, the NTSB issues a Most Wanted List of safety advocacy priorities. This year, one of the top priorities is to advance passenger vessel safety. Why? Because when people step onto a ferry, sightseeing boat, or cruise ship, they have a right to a ‘bon voyage’ — literally, a “good trip” and figuratively, a “safe trip” — whether in their daily commutes or on a family cruise.

Minister for Transport, Tourism & Sport Leo Varadkar officially launched the Coast Guard’s new state-of-the-art S92 search and rescue helicopter for the Dublin region in Weston Airport. This is the fourth Sikorsky S92 helicopter base to come into operation for the Coast Guard and means all four Coast Guard bases now have upgraded helicopters. The new S92 helicopters replace the Sikorsky S61 which was in use until recently at the Coast Guard bases in Dublin, Shannon, Sligo and Waterford.

The U.S. Coast Guard announced Wednesday publication of a notice of proposed rulemaking to remove references to type codes in its regulations on the carriage and labeling of Coast Guard-approved personal flotation devices (PFDs). PFD type codes are unique to Coast Guard approval and are not well understood by the general public. The current PFD type code classification system is planned to be redesigned to focus on performance criteria rather than construction standards. A new easy-to-understand label concept is intended to help both professional mariners and recreational boaters select the best device for their intended uses and routes.

The acquisition marks the Safariland Group’s entrance into marine and aviation industries. The Safariland Group, a manufacturer of protective products and equipment primarily for law enforcement and the military, has acquired Mustang Survival and its related entities, Mustang Survival Inc. and Mustang Survival Mfg., Inc. Mustang Survival is the North American market leader in lifesaving equipment for recreational, military, law enforcement and industrial users in the marine and aviation environments. For more than 45 years, Mustang Survival has been transforming innovative ideas and technologies into high-quality and practical lifesaving products such as inflatable personal flotation devices…

The Safariland Group, a  manufacturer of protective products and equipment primarily for law enforcement and the military, has acquired Mustang Survival and its related entities, Mustang Survival Inc. and Mustang Survival Mfg., Inc. (collectively, “Mustang Survival”). Mustang Survival is in the North American market for lifesaving equipment for recreational, military, law enforcement and industrial users in the marine and aviation environments. For more than 45 years, Mustang…

Multiple agencies and Amver ship work together to rescue 10 from the Philippine Sea, 90 miles NE of Palau. The U.S. Coast Guard in coordination with the Republic of Palau Division of Maritime Law Enforcement and the Royal Australian Navy Maritime Surveillance Advisor partnered to provide assistance. The mariners in distress originated their voyage on a 60-foot traditional sailing canoe traveling from Palau to the outer islands of Yap State in the Federated States of Micronesia.

RECALL NOTICE ON MD2010 & MD2012 model 22LB Inflatable Personal Flotation Devices. The United States Coast Guard strongly urges mariners and boaters alike to check their Mustang Survival PFDs. Mustang Survival is voluntarily recalling all model number MD2010 and MD2012 This recall is being issued for the inspection and repair of an inflator installation inconsistency thatSurvival has developed a solution that corrects any affected product and prevents re-occurrence of this issue. The inspection and repair can only be performed at a Mustang Survival factory. This recall notification is for only the MD2010 and MD2012 22LB buoyancy inflatable PFDs. No other Mustang Survival products are affected as they utilize different inflator mechanisms.

With the tragic deaths of three Massachusetts fishermen last weekend still resonating throughout the community, the Coast Guard continues to enforce boating safety regulations and, when necessary, force vessels to return to port to correct hazardous conditions. Two Bar Harbor, Maine-based fishing vessels, and one Scituate, Mass., based fishing vessel were boarded and consequently escorted back to their respective ports Tuesday after Coast Guard boarding teams discovered multiple safety violations. "We don't terminate fishing voyages because we're trying to make life difficult for the fishermen," said Ted Harrington, the First Coast Guard District's commercial fishing vessel safety specialist. "We terminate the voyages because we're concerned about the safety of the crew.

Stearns Inc., a manufacturer of Personal Flotation Devices (PFD’s) acquired SOS and Sospenders, a market leader in inflatable PFD’s for a variety of water sports uses. According to Paul Ebnet, President of Stearns, “Sospenders products offer an excellent opportunity for Stearns to expand our presence in the fast-growing inflatable PFD market and provide us with additional opportunities for our current and new customers alike. With the increasing focus on comfort by water sports enthusiasts, Sospenders is a great fit for Stearns. Both Stearns and Sospenders have a long history of producing innovative products with the safety and comfort of boaters in mind.”

The Coast Guard is responding to a cruise ship that ran aground this morning after taking on water in the Intercoastal Waterway near the Pungo region of Virginia Beach, Va. The cruise ship Spirit of Nantucket with 66 people onboard notified the Coast Guard after the vessel began taking on water. The captain of the vessel purposely ran it aground to prevent the ship from sinking. An MH-60 Jayhawk Rescue Helicopter from Coast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City, N.C., is en-route with dewatering pumps. Two 25-foot rescue crews and a 41-foot utility boat from Coast Guard Station's Elizabeth City and Portsmouth, Virginia Beach Police Department, Virginia State Police Department and a Chesapeake, Va., marine unit are also responding.