NYCkayaker PFD rules in PA

[skimmer]

Hi All,
Please send comments to C. Sutherland.
Thanks,
Chuck Sutherland
Skimmer at enter.net
-----------------------


(For Delaware Valley TSCA November 2006 newsletter) 

PFDs for PA Boaters (Proposed new rules)©  
By Chuck Sutherland 
(E-mail: skimmer at enter.net) 

Effortsare under way in the U.S. (PA, MA) and Canada  to 
    make PFD use mandatory for folks on the water in small  
    boats. The public comment period for the proposed rule  
    changes in PA will run from October 14, 2006 to 
    November  14, 2006. Rule making decisions will be made 
    in January 2007  and will take effect upon publication in the 
    Pennsylvania  Bulletin. 

  Thereare two possible options currently on the table. In  the 
    lesser case, boaters in watercraft under 16 ft and all canoes  
    and kayaks will be required to wear PFDs at all times on 
    the  water in the cold months of the year (October through 
    May).  Alternatively, the PA Fish and Boat Commission 
    may vote to  require year-round PFD use by such boaters 
    (see item #188 at  www.fish.state.pa.us/reg398.htm). 

  Statisticsand dissent 

  In  spite of years of effort in the U.S. and Canada, state  and 
    federal agencies have been unable to convince the general  
    boating public that wearing PFDs on the water is a good 
    idea.  At present, PFD use by the adult boating public 
    remains low  (21% Canada, ~ 13% in the U.S.). In the 
    U.S., when they are  on the water, many adults won’t wear 
    PFDs even to set a good  example for children in their 
    boats. In this way, they are training  the next generation of 
    boaters to carry on their distain for the use  of PFDs. 

  SomeUS statistics indicate that 7 of 10 boating fatalities  occur 
    with boats under 20 ft in length. Drowning is the most  
    common cause of death in such accidents, and in nearly 
    85% of  all boating-related drownings the victims were not 
    wearing  PFDs. Alcohol was involved in about a third of 
    those cases and  9 of 10 victims were male. Most 
    drownings occurred within 10  feet of shore or “safety”. 
    Also, the largest percentage of deaths,  relative to the 
    number of boats on the water, occurred during the  “Off 
    Season” when the water was cold. 

  Drowningoccurs in an average of 20 seconds for children  and 
    in less than a minute for adults. Extensive data on these  
    matters indicate that swimming ability does not correlate 
    strongly  with survival in the water. This may be because 
    panic-induced or  cold-induced gasping (inhaling water) 
    precludes swimming even  if the victim briefly returns to the 
    surface. To rephrase that,  without a PFD and regardless of 
    their known swimming ability,  some victims do not return to 
    the surface after accidental entry  into the water. 
    
Argumentsagainst PFD use include confidence in one’s  
    swimming ability, lack of comfort or mobility in a PFD, and 
    fear  of the “wimp” factor. PFDs are considered “too hot” 
    in summer  weather. Boaters “don’t need PFDs” because 
    they are staying  near shore, they are expert boaters, they 
    have had one or more  boating courses, they are with other 
    boaters, and the captain  isn’t wearing a PFD. I believe that 
    statistics, no matter how  dramatic they are, will never 
    convince the U.S. boating public to  routinely use PFDs no 
    matter what conditions are encountered  out on the water. 
    For information on PFD use, carry out a  Google search 
    [pfd use U.S. Canada]. 

  A   recent sad case 

  On  September 19, 2006, at Avon Beach on Cape  Hatteras, 
    NC, a 35-yr-old man borrowed a “Sit-on-Top, SOT”  
    kayak (short, stable boat with a large outside cockpit) from 
    a  neighbor and went out to do a little surfing. He capsized 
    on the  first wave about 50 yards offshore. His friends said, 
    “He was  thrown from the boat”.  They saw him holding 
    onto the boat and  went down to the beach to help him. 
    When they got there, they  saw the kayak, but the victim 
    could not be found (information  provided by District 
    Ranger John McCutcheon, Cape Hatteras  National 
    Seashore).  

  The wave height was 3-4 feet, water temperature 71 o F, air  
    temperature 78 o F, and wind offshore (SSW) at up to 13 
    knots. Visibility was clear to the  horizon. The victim was a 
    novice paddler, a weak swimmer, was dressed in knee-
    length shorts  and was not wearing a PFD. He had had 
    some alcohol during the day before going out. His  body 
    was recovered several days later. It is a fact that wind 
    and/or waves can strip a kayak from a  swimmer’s grasp in 
    the blink of an eye.  

  Thoseof us that have experience in providing kayak instruction 
    know that novices may  panic the first time they capsize no 
    matter how much confidence they display before going 
    over.  We therefore stand beside them the first few times 
    they capsize (perform the “wet exit”) to make  sure they do 
    not drown due to a panic-driven gasp. One such inhalation 
    of water is enough to  drown someone in a minute or two 
    (no wet-exit required with an SOT). When they capsize in  
    rough water, trained paddlers have learned to instantly stop 
    breathing, to then compose  themselves and finally either roll 
    the boat up or bail out and swim.  

  Coldwater immersion 

  As  water temperature falls, another factor enters the picture. 
    Boaters dressed in street  clothes, who are suddenly 
    immersed in cold water, experience a reflex (involuntary) 
    gasping  response. Without a PFD, the victim inhales water 
    during the moment their momentum drives  them under the 
    surface. As in the Cape Hatteras case, they are also often 
    seen briefly at the surface  before disappearing from sight. 
    Even nearby boaters can not respond quickly enough to 
    save or  even reach such victims. The gasping response, 
    along with immediate increases in heart rate and  blood 
    pressure, is called cold shock. 

  Boatersin the general boating population routinely refuse to 
    wear PFDs or any type of  wetsuit when they are out on 
    cold water even though many PFDs and wetsuits etc. on the 
     market today are entirely comfortable, moderately priced 
    and long lasting. Well, it’s October as  I write this. The cold 
    season is upon us. There are no programs out there for the 
    general public  to train them for cold water boating. Safe 
    Boating Week won’t roll around until the end of May  2007 
    when boaters will again reject and forget the information 
    provided to them.  They are  swimmers and summertime 
    means warm water boating! 

  Conclusions

  In  the U.S., Canada and many other countries, there is wide 
    spread stubborn resistance  to wearing PFDs on all manner 
    of small boats throughout the year. This is the case even 
    though  there can be no justifiable argument on any grounds 
    for at least wearing them when out on cold  water. The 
    Cape Hatteras case demonstrates that surprise- or panic-
    induced gasping can also  result in rapid drowning in warm 
    air/water conditions. I believe that routine wearing of PFDs  
    should be seen as a sign that the boater is determined to not 
    drown due to an incident that  should be barely a trivial 
    bother! The common observation that
 “He died doing 
    something he  loved!” is utter nonsense!  

  Apartfrom our poor understanding of responses to sudden 
    accidental immersion in  either warm or cold water, there is 
    a total failure in the general boating public to fully grasp a  
    most fundamental attribute of boating accidents. Accidents 
    don’t provide Fair Warning! Instead,  they deliver a 
    monumental sucker punch when our backs are turned. 
    Despite all manor of  training, we can not control when 
    accidents are going to occur. If we are not able to promptly  
    save ourselves, our job is to survive at the surface long 
    enough to be rescued. Boaters are told to  wear PFDs 
    because they are hard to put on once you are in the water. 
    No! More often, once you  are over the side, it is too late! 
    Folks don’t go back for PFDs. As do kayakers capsizing  
    suddenly in rapids, we must stop breathing, collect our wits, 
    and then fight to survive. The  accident may not be your 
    fault! Failure to prepare yourself ahead of time is your 
    fault! It looks  like new rules governing PFD use by small 
    boat operators are on their way.   
    
References:

  PFD use studies 
http://www.wearalifejacket.com/
http://ip.bmjjournals.com/cgi/content/full/4/3/203
More:under Google Search enter [pfd use U.S. Canada] 

  Coldwater boating 
http://www.tc.gc.ca/marinesafety/TP/Tp13822/menu.htm
http://www.enter.net/~skimmer/coldwater.html
http://www.AtlanticKayakTours.com (go to Expert Center: 
Coldwater Safety)