General safety on the water

In 2012, there were new rules for sailing at post-secondary schools and other institutions. In them, the Danish Maritime Authority states that all sailing at boarding schools is commercial sailing, and no distinction is made between education and leisure. All schools must have safety instructions for activities at sea. The guiding principle in the new rules from the Danish Maritime Authority is that the school must draw up safety instructions that cover all the school's sailing activities.

Pupils who participate in sailing during their stay at institutions and schools, including boarding schools, are in the care of the school and are entitled to the same safety as a passenger who has purchased a service in the form of sailing. The schools and institutions receive payment, either through public or private funds. The school is therefore responsible for the students' safety and health when sailing, and it cannot be assumed that students have special sea safety skills in advance.

Vessels used commercially. For commercial sailing, stricter requirements are placed on the crew members' skills, the vessel's construction, equipment and operation, as well as requirements for inspection and approval of the vessel. If the schools wish to make canoes or small rowing boats available, which the students themselves can use for sailing, this is possible according to the provisions on rental. It is still the responsibility of the school that the vessels are built and equipped in accordance with applicable regulations from the Danish Maritime Authority

The school should ensure

That if the student, is under 18 years of age the student's parents, have been made aware that it is the student himself who is responsible for the safety conditions during sailing, just as the exercise of good seamanship is the responsibility of the student himself.
That parental consent has been obtained if the student is under 18 years of age,
Vessel, lifejacket and any wet or dry suit are CE marked
The student has accident insurance,
The student is competent for the activity (e.g. "free rowing" from a canoe and kayak club or has received lessons in a sailing club), can swim and is able to demonstrate good seamanship.
That at least the teachers have downloaded the following security apps, preferably the students too
- Windy, Safe to sail, Safe to sail alarm, Yr.no, Surf first aid, CPR, Sailing forecast, DMI

Before any kind of sailing, you must pay particular attention to:

To comply with regulations and recommendations for the season,
That the sailing takes place in safe proximity to the coast
That information about the voyage and the number of people on board is always communicated to people ashore, and
That the vessel is equipped with approved rescue equipment, communication options to land and, where relevant, fire-extinguishing equipment.
A main rule for the schools is therefore that there must never be more people in the school's vessels than the vessel's approval warrants, and the number of students in the vessels must never exceed 12.

In their maritime activities, the boarding schools commit to

That the teachers have a first aid course corresponding to approximately 12 hours.
To know and comply with the international rules of the sea, incl. to exhibit good seamanship.
To ensure that trainers have the relevant, necessary formal and real training skills to manage the maritime activities for which they are responsible. The starting point is education, recognized by authorities and organizations in the field.
to meet the requirements of the relevant authorities and interest organizations' guidelines for the activities.
To follow instructions from the Maritime Safety Council and draw up own safety regulations for the school's maritime activities based on the Afterschool Association's "Guidelines for afterschool activities at sea."
To develop quality assurance of the school's maritime activities, including
That the students acquire relevant proficiency certificates and clearance certificates for sailing.
That the schools' instructors are certified and further trained.
That the schools participate in an exchange of experience with others about sailing, including possibly joins the interest organizations in the area

Wind and weather

Partest in part, every year, more than half of the accidents and mishaps that happen on the water are caused in whole or in part by the weather. When we talk about the weather, we talk about many things - wind direction, wind strength, clouds, visibility, precipitation, air pressure and temperature. All this as well as the state of the sea - i.e. the size of the waves and the direction and speed of the current, which are created by the weather - you should find out about. Always check the weather forecast before you go on a trip. Download SejlSikkert app where you can see prospects for wind and current in Denmark. The longer the trip, the more important it becomes.

You can also get the latest local weather forecast by calling 1853, press 3 for "Water forecasts and observations" and then select the desired local area. Listen especially for wind and current. It's an advantage to take headwinds and headwinds first, so you won't be surprised on the way home and might not have enough strength for a hard trip.

If there is a prospect of severe weather, take your precautions in time: prepare the boat, choose an alternative route or postpone the trip to another day.

At dmi.dk you can always see the weather right now and a forecast for the weather to come.

Before you set sail, it is good to know at least something about:

The wind direction
The wind speed
The risk of rain, showers and thunder
The risk of reduced visibility
Weather development in the coming hours

It is also possible to find out about: Waves, swell, current, air temperature, water temperature, air pressure, air humidity, cloud cover, salinity (salinity) and tides

There are weather forecasts that especially apply to Danish waters. They are called water views, sailing views, weather at sea or sailing weather, depending on where you find them.

A weather forecast for your entire area is good to know before you set sail, but it is also important to know the water forecast, because there is often a difference between the weather on land and over water.

The wind is also indicated by its strength on the Beaufort scale, either with a number or with words.

Below is a description of the low wind forces and a description of the waves they create.

Wind force 3 – Light wind: At wind force 3, it blows approx. 3-5 m/s The waves are powerful small waves, where the crests begin to break, so that a glassy foam forms. The wave height can be up to around 0.6 meters.

Wind force 4 – Steady wind: At wind force 4 it blows approx. 5-8 m/s. The waves are smaller waves which have quite frequent foam tops. The wave height can be around 1.0 meters when there has been enough space and time to build the waves big.

Wind force 5 – Fresh wind: At wind force 5 it blows approx. 8-11 m/s. There are moderate waves with a more pronounced, elongated shape. Many foam peaks form and there may be foam spray in the air.

When the wind briefly increases or decreases, it is called a gust. A gust lasts less than 1 minute.

When the wind increases for a longer period of time, i.e. over 1 minute, with at least 8 m/s (16 knots), it is called a gust. Gusts and gusts of wind often come together with rain showers.

When a large cumulonimbus cloud passes, you will experience that the wind increases as you approach the cloud. This is because the rain that falls from the cloud pulls cold air down with it. The cold air from the cloud has a greater wind speed, which causes it to blow up rather suddenly and produce a gust of wind together with the rain shower. Often the gust of wind comes just before it starts to rain. The wind also changes direction, and it can blow quite violently under the cloud. But in 15-30 minutes the cloud will have passed. The wind then subsides, finds its old direction again, and it stops raining.

When the wind blows over uneven terrain with hills, forests, trees and houses, the wind will slow down and turn, and in some places air will pile up so that the wind speed increases. Air from higher air layers, which has a greater speed, also comes down to the surface and causes gusts. They say that the air is turbulent. If you sail close to a coast or in fjords and straits, you may experience that the wind is unpredictable and that there are many gusts and areas with almost no wind.

On a sunny summer day, it can happen that the air is heated more over land than over sea. Then the air rises into the air over the land. To compensate for the rising air, it is drawn in from the sea towards the land. This onshore wind is called a sea breeze. The sea breeze is not there in the morning, but starts in the morning and blows strongly in the middle of the afternoon.

In the evening, the sea breeze disappears again, because the sun no longer heats the land. Many sailors have experienced that the good wind disappeared in this way at the start of the evening sailings. The sea breeze can become a fairly strong wind, up to strong winds, and it can be felt up to 20 nautical miles from the coast. Cumulus clouds are also often seen along the coast inland.

Land breeze is the term for the opposite phenomenon. It occurs at night due to the cooling of land.

The air and water temperature is of great importance to sailors and rowers, both for safety and for the pleasure of being on the water. If you are not dressed appropriately for the air temperature, sailing can be both uncomfortable and risky.

Staying in cold water quickly leads to life-threatening cooling - the so-called hypothermia. Therefore, it can be very dangerous to fall overboard. Remember that cold water "steals" body heat much faster than air.

Even in summer, the temperature in the Danish seawater is low enough to cause hypothermia.

It can rain in two different ways. One is called showers and the other continuous rain or drizzling rain or simply rain. We call it showers when it rains briefly and intensely for 10-20 minutes and the rain falls from single clouds that look like heads of cauliflower. These clouds are called cumulus or cumulonimbus. The cloud can grow very high in the air and the showers can be with lightning and thunder. Often there are gusts and gusts of wind along with the rain shower, and it can therefore blow up strongly in a very short time. Stormy weather can be dangerous weather for pleasure craft on the water

We call it continuous rain or drizzling rain when it rains for a long time, often several hours, and the sky is completely covered by an even, continuous, gray cloud layer. These clouds are called stratus or nimbostratus. In pouring rain, the wind is usually constant both in direction and speed

Waves are created when the wind blows over the water. The more windy, the higher the waves. Waves grow bigger and bigger if there is enough space and if there is enough time for it. You can therefore often see from the waves how much it is blowing. If you sail close to a coast in an offshore wind, the waves close to the coast will not show how windy it is, because there is shelter from the coast. The same applies in healthy fjords or other narrow and protected waters.

So you have to remember that the waves are not the same size everywhere, even if the wind is the same. If there is an offshore wind, the waves will be small right in the coast, where the wind has no room to build the waves big. Further out from the coast the waves will get bigger and bigger.

As long as the wind is still blowing and transferring energy to the water, we call it waves. But when the wind disappears from the area, the waves will move on, like swells. Swells are therefore old waves that can travel many nautical miles before dying out. Swells are often longer and softer than waves, and swells do not have foam tops.

If waves meet swells, the two types of lakes will build on top of each other, and you will experience some very special lakes which can be difficult to sail in and which in the same area can have very different heights and shapes. When waves move into shallow water, they take on a different shape. They become higher, shorter and steeper, and it is said that there are craggy lakes. Shallow lakes can also be seen when waves move into a counter current. These waves can be dangerous for small boats, but luckily you can tell by the water that they are there.

The current is indicated by its theorem, i.e. the direction in which the water moves. NE-going current is thus a situation where the water moves in a NE-like direction. Note that this indication is against the wind. The current is also indicated by its speed, which is most often given in knots, which are nautical miles per hour (1 knot = 1.852 km per hour). The current is mainly formed by wind and tides. Even in calm and good weather, a fairly strong current can run in Danish waters.

The current can flow in opposite directions and at different speeds in different places in the same body of water. Along a coast there is a current opposite to that which is out in the deeper water. Such a coastal opposite current is called a tidal current and you can use it to your advantage if you have the current against you out in the deeper water

When fog drops, rain or snow float around in the air, you can't see very far. It is said that visibility is reduced. Reduced visibility is both a dangerous and unpleasant phenomenon for sailors. With reduced visibility, you cannot keep a proper lookout for other vessels, and because you also cannot see buoys, beacons and other water markings, you can lose your orientation and navigate incorrectly. Large ships also have problems in fog, and have, among other things, difficult to see smaller vessels. Many collisions and groundings occur when visibility is reduced. Small vessels should not sail out if there is a prospect of fog.

Clouds can show what weather is coming. Eg. we know that:

When the clouds are high up and are white and feathery, there is no precipitation. All rain, snow, hail, etc. falling from low clouds.
Precipitation almost always falls from dark clouds, (but note that clouds can also be dark because they are in shadow).
If the clouds are thin, so that you can see the sun and moon through, or if the clouds are small and flat, then no precipitation comes from them either.
If small cauliflower-like clouds (cumulus) grow larger during the day, showers may come from them later, and there may be thunder with.
If there are clouds and the air pressure is high at the same time, i.e. over approx. 1020 hPa, then precipitation rarely comes from the clouds.
If the clouds are dark cumulus and the weather forecast has announced showers, then you must be aware that it can blow up a lot when the showers come.

What do you do in a thunderstorm?

Stay in port if possible. It is best not to sail out in thunderstorms.
If you're out in weather where there's a risk of thunder, keep a close eye on the sky to see when it's approaching. Dark cumulus clouds move up, and showers and gusts come with them.
Be aware that thunder can come quite suddenly and that the first lightning comes before the thunder and can come before the cloud is above you.
Don't stand on the deck, sit low in the boat. Sit far from stays and gloves.
The best thing is to leave the cockpit and go down into the cabin, and if you have an autopilot, let it steer. However, remember to keep an eye out!
Do not touch any metal parts.
Disconnect or do not touch electrical installations and equipment.
You can attach starter cables to the shroud and stay and leave them in the water. Do this well before the thunderstorm is upon you.
If anyone gets scared, try to reassure them by telling them that it is very rare to be struck by lightning at sea.

What does the temperature mean?

In spring and early summer the water is still quite cold, i.e. around 10˚C. And the air can also be cold at the same time of year, especially in the morning and evening. If it's also windy, you get cold quickly. It is important to remember.
Therefore, dress well, preferably according to the three-layer principle: tight-fitting woolen or thermal underwear on the inside, warm insulating middle layer and windproof on the outside. Remember hat, warm socks and neck warmers!
If you fall into the water, the cold water will cool the body much faster than cold air. Remember that even in summer the water in Danish waters is too cold to stay for a long time.

Law and justice on the water

The lake's elementary traffic rules apply to everyone. Also for smaller pleasure craft - from a hollowed-out log to large private motorboats.In Danish waters, anyone may sail with a recreational vessel under 15 meters in length without having to obtain permission from any authority and without taking any kind of test.This freedom to sail leads many to believe that laws and regulations do not apply to recreational sailing, but there do. These laws and regulations deal with, among other things, responsibility, compensation, traffic and consideration for others – and they correspond to the rules we are subject to when we travel on land. The maritime laws include, among other things The Maritime Act, the Seamen's Act and the Act on the safety of ships. In these laws and the related executive orders, you can, among other things, read: On every ship or vessel there must be a master who has duties and responsibilities with regard to equipment, safe sailing and the safety of those on board.

Sailing Regulations

The many regulations that apply to seafarers can be collectively called sailing regulations.

There are 4 groups that recreational sailors should be aware of in particular:l:

The international rules of the sea, which apply to all ship sizes, on all seas and in all waters connected to the seas.

The national rules which apply to all seafarers in certain Danish waters. The rules include a large number of provisions - i.a. for sailing through work areas for bridge and tunnel construction. There are also provisions regarding sailing with jet skis etc., which are generally prohibited in Danish waters, unless permission has been granted for it within a specified area.

Rules for sailing in smaller water areas, e.g. on a fjord or through a bridge. These three groups of rules mentioned above are normally determined by executive orders. The rules are published in the Norwegian Maritime Administration's weekly magazine Eftretninger for Søfarende (www.frv.dk) and are fully or partially printed in various books such as Den danske Lods (www.kms.dk – see nautical publications) volumes 1 and 2, Den danske Havnelods og Fiskeriårbogen. The books can be bought in bookstores and boat equipment stores.

Any special local rules for sailing in harbors, on lakes, in streams or near coasts and beaches. These rules are set by the police or other local authorities and are usually only published locally through notices and signs. Local rules and prohibitions can e.g. it is mentioned that motor boats in the summer along most beaches and coasts, within certain limits, are prohibited from sailing so fast that they plan on the water (speed boat sailing). And that there are also bathing areas where all sailing is prohibited. Violation of the sailing regulations may result in charges being brought with possible subsequent punishment - just as in the case of a violation of other laws and regulations.

Water Information

In order to sail safely, it is also necessary to have knowledge of depth conditions, current conditions, markings, areas where anchoring and fishing are prohibited or advised against, shooting areas where sailing is prohibited when special signals are displayed, traffic separations, sailing routes for large ships, etc.

If you only sail in local waters, you know the conditions in the area and can, among other things, by talking to others at the port or beach get information about changes and new rules. But also when you sail further around in Danish or foreign waters, you need knowledge of the local conditions in the various water sections. You gain that knowledge first of all by thoroughly studying the charts of the areas and by reading the water descriptions. One should also be aware that islands, islets and stretches of water may be designated as game and nature reserves, where sailing and residence are prohibited. In bays and fjords there may also be archaeological areas where sport diving is prohibited. These kinds of specially protected areas are usually shown in Danish charts and mentioned in the water descriptions.

Maritime rules

If two sailing ships meet and they have the wind coming in from different sides, the one with the wind on the port side must give way. If they have the wind on the same side, the one closest to the wind must give way. In case of doubt, good seamanship must be shown by both ships.
If a sailing vessel/canoe etc. and a motor-powered vessel meet each other, the motor-powered vessel must give way to the sailing vessel. However, this does not apply if the sailing vessel overtakes the engine-powered vessel, as it is always the catching/overtaking vessel that must give way.
If there is a danger of collision between two ships, one must give way to the other - clearly and in good time. There is a risk of collision when the direction (bearing) of another approaching ship does not change perceptibly.
Always be on the lookout with both eyes and ears.
Every ship/boat must always travel at a safe speed. This means that it can be stopped even for an unexpected obstacle. Visibility, clarity, traffic density and consideration for others are just a few of the many factors that determine which speed is a safe speed.
You must be able to see others and be seen yourself.
Boats of 12 meters or more must have a whistle (mechanical siren) and a bell.
Boats under 12 meters are not required to have these sounders, but if they do not have them, they must be able to give effective sound signals in another way – e.g. with a trill, a toot horn, a gong-gong or a pot.

Man overboard

Everyone who travels at sea fears falling overboard. On the one hand, it can be difficult to get back up in itself, on the other hand there can be complications such as bad weather, poor visibility, etc.

Common causes of falling overboard:

Overbalance due to waves or other sudden movements in the boat.
Stumbled into a mess on the doorknob or deck.
Capsizing due to reduced stability caused by water in the bottom of the boat.
Alcohol.

The preparation should be done in three ways:

Prevent so that the risk of falling overboard is reduced.
Prepare yourself and your boat for the fact that the accident may still happen.
Practice the MOB situation over and over.

Prevent the man overboard situation

Do not sail in bad weather.
Keep order on board.
Use suitable footwear.
Choose a boat suitable for the purpose of your activity.
Avoid water in the bottom of the boat.
Use lifeline and madeleines.
Be careful not to let the water spill over the side.
Save the alcohol until you are safely in port.

Prepare the Man Overboard situation

You never know how serious a MOB situation can develop. Therefore, you must try to take many different situations into account when preparing yourself and the boat. If there are more people on board, it is very important that there are at least two who can sail the boat. Therefore, start every sailing trip with a short instruction, so that the others on board are not completely lost if you yourself fall overboard. Next, the preparations for a MOB situation are very much about the right equipment and a lot about training, so that you know what to do and how to use the aids.

Train Man overboard the situation again and again!

Once you have equipped yourself and the boat with the necessary aids, it is crucial that you practice the situation where you or a fellow sailor fall overboard.

The most important message about Man overboard

No one should go out on the water in any vessel without having decided and practiced what to do in a situation where you or someone else on board the boat falls into the water.

Often you will find that it is simply impossible to get up yourself – or to rescue someone else – unless you invest in some equipment for the purpose.

What you have to invest in depends entirely on, among other things, the boat, weather conditions and the physical condition of the person to be rescued, but most often the most important investment will be a good bathing ladder, which should preferably reach at least 50 centimeters into the water in its extended state.

Find out what is needed on your boat, get it, and practice the situation under controlled conditions before it might one day become serious. The right equipment combined with practice in handling the situation correctly the first time can reduce an otherwise life-threatening situation to a relatively harmless, involuntary dip!

Clothing and the cold

The individual student must feel safe participating in lake activities. The teachers should consider what lies within their area of responsibility and what is expected of them when organizing sea activities. Everyone who participates in lake activities can swim 200 m and is familiar with staying in the water wearing a life jacket. Anyone participating in a sea activity must be wearing an approved lifejacket, of the appropriate size and properly closed, and be appropriately dressed.

Everyone who moves on the water should know the most elementary knowledge about clothing and the effect of cold on the body if you fall overboard. If you simply swallow a teaspoon of cold water as a result of the cold shock, just as you fall in, you will cough, so you easily swallow more water, get it in your lungs and "drown". Finally, lie still in the water and acclimatize - just as you fall in. Get control of your breathing. Then your body can perform many times more in cold water.

The first minute in cold water is the most important for your survival
Does the body cool down 4-5 times as quickly in water compared to air?
If you can't get out of the water yourself, must you lie as still and crouched down as possible to give off as little body heat as possible?
An unprotected head accounts for 25% of the body's heat loss at +10 ºC

In the cold weather, getting wet is extra dangerous. We must therefore ensure that we have the right clothing on when we sail, as well as having considered what we will do in the event of an accident and someone falls into the water.

The human brain has a thermostat built into it, which is set in such a way that the body, and especially the brain, always has a temperature of 37ºC. When we are threatened by cold, i.e. when the temperature in the deeper parts of the body and especially in the brain falls only about 1/10 ºC below the level the thermostat is set to, then the body's defense mechanisms come into action.

Symptoms of falling body temperature

It is not possible to specify exactly when, in what order and at what deep temperature the individual symptoms appear. Most people believe that death from cold is due to cardiac arrest, or cardiac arrest. These conditions seem to threaten at a body temperature around 20 - 25º C. But there are many stages before then:

Chills

Shivering is the body's way of creating heat in the muscles, but shivering requires energy. Chills seem to stop around a body temperature of approx. 33 - 35ºC. A person with this body temperature has used up all his reserves. In particular, the person will have a very low blood sugar level. It typically manifests itself in convulsions and a fluctuating state of consciousness.

Memory loss

At a core temperature of around 30 - 33ºC, memory loss occurs. This means that the hypothermic person often cannot tell what happened while the body temperature was low. In some cases, the person will also not be able to remember what happened before the temperature dropped.

Decreased agility

A drop in body temperature almost immediately results in a drop in temperature in the arms and legs. This reduces the function in line with the falling temperature. It quickly has serious, practical consequences. The cooling of the arms and legs can lead to complete disability. The cold person can no longer walk. The person can only sit or lie down, thereby opening up for further cooling. That hypothermic can't help himself. If the person is in cold water, it will be impossible to hold on to a rope, help themselves up a rescue ladder or into a life raft. Survival now depends on the lifejacket being able to keep the upper airway above water – and only a lifejacket with a collar – has the ability to do this. A lifejacket has no collar and therefore requires that you yourself can help keep yourself cool and keep your head above water. When the cold takes the flexibility of the arms and legs, you will turn over on your stomach - and drown - if you are only wearing a life jacket.

Impaired judgment

Cold dulls and removes the desire to take initiatives. A drop in temperature affects the brain and reduces the ability to think clearly and make the right decisions.

Hypothermia

The body's blood flow is controlled by some special blood vessels (called AVAs) in the fingers and toes. When they are open, warm blood from the arteries flows through these blood vessels into the superficial veins, where the blood keeps the forearms and legs up to normal temperature. The body's reactions to cooling are the same, regardless of how the cooling occurs. When the body is threatened by cooling, the blood flow to the hands and feet is closed.

The temperature will drop at the same rate as if you completely shut off the blood flow by applying a gag pressure around the arm. The blood supply to the skin, especially in the hands, forearms, feet and lower legs is reduced so much that these parts of the body are no longer kept warm. The temperature here drops to that of the surroundings. There is increasing muscle tension, whereby heat production in the muscles increases. If the cooling continues, this means that the body's temperature drops further, then chills and incipient hypothermia occur.

Cooling in air

The temperature of the air and the wind speed are decisive for the cooling. The influence of wind speed has given rise to the setting up of the so-called "Wind Chill Factor", where a measured combination of air temperature and wind speed is given at the air temperature that would give the same cooling with stagnant air. The "Wind Chill Factor" has been prepared with the aim of telling how long it will take before frostbite occurs in unprotected skin. More serious for sailors is the combination of low temperature, wind and water, as the cooling is greatly increased when the stagnant, highly insulating air in the clothing is replaced by water, which has a high thermal conductivity.

Cooling in water

A person staying in water is exposed to a very large cooling. Theoretical cooling water 25 times as fast as air. This does not mean that a person who has fallen into cold water will cool 25 times as fast as if he had stayed in air at the same temperature. The skin and the fat layers that lie just below it constitute an insulation barrier that will limit the heat transport to a value that is about 4-5 times greater than in air.

Survival in cold water

When cooling in water, the movement of the water over the skin plays a major role. Just as you can talk about the insulating ability of stagnant air, you can also talk about the insulating ability of stagnant water. This is the principle used in wetsuits, where a very thin layer of water is let in, heated to body temperature and thus insulates the body from the cold outside.

A person who falls into cold water will be able to survive longer by lying still in the water and closing all the openings of the clothing as tightly as possible. The prerequisite for being able to lie still in the water is a good life jacket. A lifejacket is not sufficient, as the lifejacket cannot hold a person in a position on their back. Due to the lack of a collar, a life jacket cannot keep the person's head high in the water either.

Rescue, first aid and treatment of a person who has fallen overboard and suffered frostbite

When rescuing, the cold victim must first of all be treated gently. That is only be moved as little as possible, however emergency relocation is of course necessary. You should preferably only move the person horizontally if possible. You must avoid stimulation of the peripheral circulation - i.e. that cold blood from the arms and legs is moved to the person's heart and lungs. Lowering the deep core temperature further, and causing a so-called "afterdrop", can eventually lead to death.

An unconscious person who is not breathing, or not breathing normally, should be treated as drowned and CPR initiated (ie 30 mid-chest compressions and two breaths, “mouth-to-mouth” or “mouth-to- nose").

When the drowning person is breathing normally, hypothermia treatment is started.

The hypothermia treatment includes the following steps:

Stop heat loss

Remove wet clothing, bring the victim to shelter, but not necessarily in a heated room. Gently pat the skin dry. Avoid massaging the skin with towels or in any other way

Begin heating

If the person is conscious, give warm sugary drinks to help with the chills. The hot drinks also warm the person from the inside. An unconscious person cannot drink, so do not try to give them anything

If the cold person is not conscious, but breathing normally, he is wrapped in hypothermia wrapping. In the event of accidents and severe emergencies, you must immediately call 112 on your mobile phone or call Lyngby Radio over the VHF. Alerting should be done as soon as possible so that help can come. With slow rewarming, the patient is wrapped so that his or her own heat production warms him or her up from the inside. The arms are not placed close to the body, the blanket must lie in between, so as not to further cool the body with the cold arms. It is important that the back is also wrapped.

Warm up

The principle of warming is to use the hypothermic person's own body heat to raise the temperature. For this purpose, blankets are used and preferably also either plastic or a special aluminum foil that is placed between the patient and the blankets. The carpets must not be heated.

Active heating

Active heating is not possible on recreational vessels. With active heating, the cold-damaged heat is supplied using a heart-lung machine. Heart-lung machines are available today as mobile machines and are operated by specially trained healthcare personnel who are used to operating these machines. The cold victim thus receives active heating, artificially supplied oxygen and circulation of the blood, all the way from the site of injury to the hospital. Staff are thus called urgently, and they then take over the highly specialized treatment of the person.

Alcohol and cold

Alcohol does not provide heat, but numbs so you don't feel the cold. Therefore, alcohol weakens the body's natural defenses against cold. Alcohol dilates the person's blood vessels, so that heat loss is faster. The body's natural defense against cold is to constrict the blood vessels.

Prevention of cold injuries

It is important to create a balance between heat production and heat loss. So move. Heat production is increased by muscle work. Good clothing cannot warm you up, but only protect against heat loss. Muscle work, good energy reserves from the diet and hot drinks are the best means to get a cold body warm again.

Proper clothing is always the very first prerequisite for preventing cold injuries. In the following, a garment with an emphasis on sailing in cold weather is described. In hot and dry weather, you can often manage with less, but you must not forget that even at relatively high air temperatures on land, it will always be colder out on the water.

Good advice for sailing in the cold

Prevention

Always wear a life jacket.
Dress according to the 3-layer principle.
Always bring plenty of dry and warm extra clothing that is kept easily accessible.
Use headgear adapted to the outside temperature.
Wear gloves when it's cold.
Make sure you keep moving, so that cold blood from the resting muscles does not suddenly "flood" the deeper parts of the body and cause very strong and completely uncontrollable chills.
On long shifts, you should have chocolate or similar ready, so that the body's sugar stores can be "refueled".
Use lifeline.

If you fall overboard

Avoid swallowing water at the first gasp.
Avoid swimming until breathing is under reasonable control.
Stay by the boat and climb into or onto it.
If you can't get out of the water, lie still and close all openings in your clothing as tightly as possible. Put a hood or hat on your head.

When searching at sea, heat-seeking, infrared equipment is used. If, as a wanted person, one observes search ships or helicopters, it is necessary to take off the cap or hood temporarily, so that their equipment can "see" the warm head.

Only swim if there is a very short distance to land or an object that can be used to keep you afloat.

Attire

Your attire should reflect the season and the weather forecast.
The main rule for dressing at sea is to follow the 3-layer principle:
- The inner hygiene part:
  - Thermal underwear
- The middle thermal part:
  - That is heat insulating and ventilating
  - Use wool, down, fleece etc. Eq. - preferably two sets to change with - with different insulating ability
- The outermost water- and wind-protective part:
  - Use trousers and jacket in a waterproof, windproof, breathable quality and make sure the jacket is easy to open so you can get rid of excess heat. Bring headgear and any gloves

In large parts of the summer, it is a really good idea to protect the skin against excessive radiation from the sun's ultraviolet rays. Apply sunscreen with a high factor where the skin is not covered - and preferably use a sun hat.

Contact

On trips of more than one day's duration on water, the teacher must ensure that reports are made to the contact person on land at least once a day. The contact person must know: from where and to where, time of departure and expected arrival, planned route and passengers on board. The contact person must be notified as soon as possible when plans change or agreements cannot be kept and always when you have arrived in port. It is important that the contact person is - or can quickly get in contact with - an experienced sailor who can assess the seriousness of any failing communication (e.g. the boat has sunk or it is just too windy so far out that the mobile phone cannot reach).

If you are going out sailing, it is a good idea to download the SejlSikkert app so that you can always check current and wind conditions at sea and get information about water warnings and shooting exercises. In addition, it also functions as a mini encyclopedia, where you can get useful information, good advice and checklists based on the five sailing tips.

With the SejlSikkert Alarm app, you can sound an alarm from the water with a single click on the mobile. The app provides your position via the mobile's GPS, so that the rescue team knows exactly where to send help, thereby saving time on unnecessary searches.

With the app, you can share your sailing route with up to six of your friends. If, for example, you are all on a trip and must meet in a port in each of your boats, you can track each other and see who arrives when.

Safety instructions

All schools that have sailing activities must draw up an organizational plan for sailing activity, which shows who is responsible for sailing and a list of approved vessel captains and those responsible for a sailing activity. It is recommended that the person responsible for sailing can document the type of boat, relevant sailing skills in the form of e.g. state-controlled aptitude test, speed boat certificate etc.

The person responsible for sailing must prepare a safety instruction for each type of vessel and type of activity.

The management must subsequently approve these.

The safety instructions must contain the following points:

Identification of the shipowner and his legally responsible person.
Sailing activities.
Identification of risks.
Measures to address risks.
Description of vessel and equipment.
The crew and their skills.
Operational precautions to be followed by crew and passengers.
Precautions which ensure that everyone can be saved in the event of an accident.
Precautions which ensure that assistance can always be called in case of accidents.
Precautions which ensure that information about the number of people on board is known and stored ashore and is easily accessible in the event of a rescue operation.
Precautions which ensure that safety instructions are always given to new people on board before the start of the voyage.
Precautions, which describe how to follow up on accidental incidents or accidents.

Float test

To ascertain whether the vessel is in practice provided with a sufficient amount of usable buoyancy agent
To ascertain whether the buoyancy aid is appropriately positioned
To ascertain whether the buoyancy aid is securely attached.

Tipping exercise

Familiarizing students with an emergency situation.
To ascertain whether bilge means are sufficient and correctly attached
To ascertain whether safety equipment is correctly attached and securely wrapped.