This
is the accepted RYA Yachtmaster crew drill in the event of a
Man Overboard:
- Shout ‘man overboard’ to alert
the crew.
- Press the MOB button on the GPS.
- Throw a life buoy and dan buoy to
the MOB. Mark the MOB with a buoyant smoke flare.
- Allocate a crewmember to point at
the MOB in the water.
- Send a DSC distress alert and a
Mayday.
- Keep pointing; don’t lose sight
of the MOB.
- If the motor has been started,
- Prepare a throwing line.
- The skipper will bring the boat
alongside the MOB, with the boat pointing into the wind
and the propeller stopped.
- Get a line around the MOB and get
them aboard.
The man overboard (or fender in this
case) should be to leeward as you approach
Man Overboard Manoeuvres
So that’s the crew briefed, now comes the tricky bit:
actually pulling off the manoeuvre. A good method of
practicing is by throwing a fender overboard weighted down
with a bucket or a coil of rope. Just make sure the crew
don’t lose sight of the fender!
Under Power
If you’ve got a motor, and it works, you’re going to
want to use it in an emergency, so let’s deal with that
scenario first:
- Sheet in the mainsail and heave to
in order to take the way off your boat pass buoyancy to
the casualty and mark with a dan buoy. Instruct a
crewmember to point at the MOB. Retrieve any warps from
the water and start the engine.
- Furl or drop the headsail.
- Make ready the throwing line.
- Manoeuvre the boat downwind of the
MOB, keeping the MOB in sight.
- Approach the MOB into the wind, so
that the mainsail is depowered. Pick up the MOB on the
leeward side, aft of the mast.
Under Sail
Now comes the really tricky bit! There’s a definite art to
coaxing your boat gently into the breeze and coming to a
standstill alongside your target. Getting it right is a
great feeling.
Even if you weren’t concerned about safety, it’s a trick
that’s well worth mastering and the fact is that a man
overboard situation is EXACTLY the time when your motor will
decide not to start, so it’s in your interests to get this
one nailed down.
On a close reach you can spill and
fill your mainsail to control your speed
- As before, sheet in the mainsail
and heave to, passing buoyancy to the casualty and
marking with a dan buoy. Instruct a crewmember to check
for warps.
- Turn away onto a beam/broad reach
and sail away.
- Sail away for about five or six
boat lengths, ensuring that you do not lose sight of the
MOB.
- Tack, aiming the leeward side of
the yacht at the MOB. Let out the headsail and mainsail
sheets. The mainsail should flap; if not, bear off
downwind to change the angle of approach. Point the boat
back at the MOB until the mainsail flaps.
- The angle of approach should be a
close reach so that the sails can be powered and
depowered. Drop the headsail if there from the mainsail
alone.
- Fill and spill the mainsail and
slowly approach the MOB. Pick up the MOB to leeward, aft
of the mast.
Man Overboard Recovery
The final sticking point is recovery: if your boat has any
kind of freeboard at all, you’ll soon realise that trying
to get them out of the water is not as simple as it looks.
If your boat has a bathing platform on the transom, then you
might be able to get them back aboard via the ladder. It is
worth bearing in mind that in rough conditions this will be
a dangerous place to attempt to recover a MOB, as there is a
risk of being drawn under the stern.
Parbuckle
This is set on the side of the boat with the foot attached
to the gunwale. The head is attached either to a handybilly
(block and tackle) or straight to the halyard.
MOB Recovery Raft
These are purpose built for the job. Again, you
could use the halyard or, if your boat doesn’t have a
solid kicker, the boom and mainsheet.
You’ve got to
hope it never happens to you, but the key thing is simply to
be prepared and then you can go out on the water with
confidence and enjoy yourself.”
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