Accidents and boating

Yesterday, a friend of mind, an excellent long-time sailor, and a careful individual, got his hand caught in the winch while trying to turn the anchor in the chute.  His foot slipped, and accidentally turned the winch on.  They amputated his left pinky finger between the first and second digit.

This took place in the Bahamas, near Marsh Harbour.

In spite of the horrific end result, there were a few positives.  First, his wife, aboard with him, is an RN.  Second, he was very near (couple of hours) decent medical help.  Third, he had friends on another boat who helped with the boat, and the logistics of returning to port while his wife administered first aid.

While all my sympathetic nerves are aching, I thought it was a good time to make a couple of comments.  My friends were well prepared, and I wondered how many cruisers would be.

Have a decent first aid kid aboard, and know what to do with it.  You can do far better making your own than buying a pre-built one.  Get some good first aid training.  Know how to stop bleeding and what to do with an airway obstruction.  Know how to identify the signs of shock, hypothermia, and heat exhaustion.  Everyone on the boat should have some rudimentary first aid training that goes further than "call 911."

Just like everyone aboard should have first aid training, everyone on board should familiarize themselves with the boat's equipment.  For couples traveling together, duties are often shared, with one person always doing the same task.  Make sure everyone knows how to get the vessel underway, to pick up the anchor, to maneuver the vessel, and to navigate.  Make sure everyone knows how to operate the radio, and what frequencies to get help on.  

Everyone should also be able to mark a man-overboard position, and be able to return to that position without running over the individual.  Everyone should be able to heave a floating line, life ring, or life-saving device to that individual, and be able to help them out of the water.  On commercial vessels, we practiced these "Oscar" drills, throwing a dummy in the water, and having the crew work together to spot the dummy and retrieve it.

Try to develop a situational awareness of where the nearest medical help is, and how to access them.  Cruising guides are great resources, and sometimes a local connection is even better.  Develop relationships in local communities, because it helps to know that you can call so and so on the cruiser-net and they can help with local information.

May your hand heal quickly, friend; I'm glad you guys were prepared.