Episode 17 - Safety Culture and Survival at Sea
In episode 17, we hear about survival at sea, and creating a culture of safety on fishing vessels to prevent fishermen from ending up in the water. We hear about life jacket use (or lack thereof), a story of survival from a lobsterman who fell overboard, and about a special project to get more fishermen wearing personal flotation devices.
The Fishing Forward is a podcast inspired by fishermen, for fishermen, featuring discussions from scientific experts and fishermen on health, safety, and staying shipshape in the commercial fishing industry. Fishing Forward funded and produced by the Northeast Center for Occupational Health and Safety, and by the Coastal Routes Radio team at the University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada and at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
Fishing Forward is hosted by Dr. Hannah Harrison (@fishpeopleplace) at Dalhousie University and Dr. Philip Loring (@ConserveChange)at the University of Guelph.
Northeast Center for Occupational Health and Safety (necenter.org/)
Coastal Routes Project (www.coastalroutes.org)
In this episode we heard from:
Dr. Julie Sorensen, Director of the Northeast Center for Occupational Health and Safety (https://necenter.org/)
Father Sinclair Oubre, Director of the Apostleship of the Sea and Pastor at St. Franicis of Assisi Catholic Church
John Aldridge, lobster fishermen and co-author of A Speck in the Sea: A Story of Survival and Rescue.
Find John's book: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/33160596-a-speck-in-the-sea
Lifejackets save lives, but there are other ways to prevent a fatality due to falls overboard—reducing fall hazards, man-overboard alarms, recovery devices, training crew on resuscitation and treatment. You can find more details about those measures here at the CDC website: https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/67/wr/mm6716a2.htm
In John's interview, he mentions using a Kent lifejacket. This life jacket is specially designed for commercial fishermen. You can read more about it here: https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/docs/2015-119/default.html
For more about personal flotation devices, look here: https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/fishing/pfds.html