Browsing: PLBs

Cruising Life
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NTSB: Use This To Save Your Life

The National Transportation Safety Board just issued a safety alert urging boat owners to give everyone on board a personal locator device to improve their chances of being rescued in an emergency. PLBs or satellite emergency notification devices can pinpoint your location in an emergency, so that others will know where to find you and they can coordinate rescue efforts. The NTSB says that current PLBs are accurate within about 300 feet and that they almost immediate notify search-and-rescue organizations when they’re activated. The NTSB said that the use of PLBs in the sinking of the U.S. cargo ship El…

Cruising Life
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NOAA: Satellites Saved 330 People Last Year

Here’s some important news from NOAA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, showing the life-saving importance of having EPIRBs, PLBs or other emergency rescue beacons on board your boat: NOAA’s fleet of advanced satellites are essential for predicting weather and climate, and last year they also helped rescue 330 people from potentially life-threatening situations throughout the United States and its surrounding waters. Of the 330 U.S. rescues, 195 were water rescues, 29 were from aviation incidents and 106 were from events on land. Alaska had the most SARSAT rescues with 55, followed by Florida with 52 and California with 37.…

Cruising Life
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ACR Introduces New ResQLink Personal Locator Beacons with Global Reach

ACR Electronics has just launched new ResQLink personal locator beacons that are small, lightweight and pack more punch to help you in case of an emergency. The new PLBs have a digital display option, and they incorporate first-hand feedback from survivors who have had to activate their PLBs in real life. The new ResQLink PLBs are small enough that you can carry them in a pocket or attach them to a life jacket. They have built-in buoyancy and an operating life of more than 24 hours. They also have global coverage, operating on three satellite systems so their signals can…

Cruising Life
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Six of the Best Personal Survival Devices for Your Boat. Make Sure You Have One

There are few choices you make about your boat that are potentially more important than finding the right survival device, the personal locator beacon or MOB equipment that could save your life, or the life of anyone else on board. And there’s no reason to postpone getting one or more of these; they generally are the least costly piece of electronics on board, by a long shot. But what to buy? Here’s some advice from Marine Electronics Journal, which asked manufacturers to submit what they consider the best and brightest in their product line. The Journal published a review of…

Cruising Life
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Coast Guard Slams Captain, Crew and Owner in El Faro Disaster; Recommends Wider Use of PLBs

The Coast Guard investigation into the sinking of the container ship El Faro, resulting in the death of the captain and all 32 members of the crew two years ago in a 150-mph hurricane in the Bahamas, cast a wide net of error covering all the parties involved – the captain, the crew and the ship’s owner. Calling the tragedy “one of the worst maritime disasters in U.S. history,” the Coast Guard’s 199-page report said the captain fatally “failed to understand the severity of the situation, even when the watch standers warned him the hurricane was intensifying.” The owner, according…