Rescue boats
Governing: STCW Code Table A-VI/2-1; REG Yacht Code Part A 13.4, Part B 7.8 and 7.19, Common Annex C1. Builds on: L1.2. See also: Proficiency in Fast Rescue Boats (FRB).
The rescue boat does most of the real work in yacht emergencies: man overboard, a guest on a toy in difficulty, towing rafts, landing a casualty. Table A-VI/2-1 covers launching and recovering rescue boats in a rough sea and using them for marshalling liferafts and rescuing survivors and persons in the sea.
What Part A requires of every rescue boat
REG Part A 13.4(1):
- A means to recover a person from the sea, assumed unconscious or unable to help. A boarding ladder or scrambling net, if fitted, reaches at least 600 mm below the lowest operational waterline.
- Stowed in continuous readiness to launch in not more than 5 minutes; an inflatable kept fully inflated at all times.
- Enough mobility and manoeuvrability in a seaway to retrieve persons, marshal liferafts and tow the largest liferaft fully loaded at 2 knots or more.
- Equipped to the LSA Code requirements for rescue boats.
Size-dependent rules
| 500 GT and over | Under 500 GT | |
|---|---|---|
| Boat | LSA Code approved (colour excepted) | LSA approved, or a boat suitable for rescue |
| Minimum capacity | LSA rescue boat | 4 persons, one lying down |
| RIB tubes | LSA standard | At least 3 buoyancy compartments |
| Visibility | Highly visible colour or patches of at least 1 m2 | Same |
Part B passenger yachts
At least one rescue boat each side (7.19). Recovery time is not more than 5 minutes in moderate sea conditions (7.8(4)), and each rescue boat is served by its own launching appliance.
Drills
REG Annex C1(11): rescue boats other than lifeboats are launched with their assigned crew and manoeuvred in the water each month as far as reasonable and practicable, and at least once every three months. With headway, only in sheltered water under an experienced officer.
The crew
A rescue boat crew is typically three: coxswain, bowman and a crew member for the casualty. The coxswain should hold PSCRB (or Restricted) at minimum; if the boat is designated a fast rescue boat, crew also need Proficiency in Fast Rescue Boats.
WARNING - The tender is not automatically the rescue boat A limousine tender stored in a closed garage may not meet the 5-minute readiness or the casualty space requirement. If the yacht designates a tender as its rescue boat, it has to meet the Code as a rescue boat.
Recovering a person
- Approach from downwind, keep the person in sight, stop the engine or put it in neutral close in.
- Recover over the side, horizontally if possible for a cold casualty.
- Protect from further cooling and head for the yacht or the rendezvous.
Recovering the boat
The hardest part. Brief the recovery before launch: approach, painter, hook, who does what. Time the hook-on in the trough; lift as the swell rises; keep hands clear of the hook and falls.
TIP - Check the grab bag Under 500 GT the Code lets equipment be stowed in a grab bag in the boat or close by. Make sure it is actually there and complete before every launch.