One topic that came up during multiple interviews with Deepwater Horizon crew was equipment. The three leading comments were…
We really should have been able to carry knives.
Davit launched liferafts suck.
The Horizon really should have carried an FRB!
gGcaptain is working on articles addressing all three of these topics. For the knife issue we are suggesting that all mariners concerned about both hand safety and survival at sea get a knife with a sheepsfoot blade (makes it hard to stab yourself!) and a whistle… our favorite can be found here: Best Knives For the Pro-Mariner. As you can tell from this incident there is often not enough time to go get even the most basic equipment during an emergency. So our suggestion is: read the “best knife” post, buy a Spyderco Assist Rescue Knife
today, carry it at all times.
Davit launched liferafts are not a good option… more on this later.
Every MODU should have an FRB (Fast Rescue Boat). Until the article on this issue is written, enjoy the slideshow above showing many different types of FRBs.
We have a Norsafe Mako 655 Jet rescue boat on my drillship. It's advertised as a Fast Rescue Boat, but it's not. The difference is the davit winch… 0.3 m/s instead of 0.8 m/s. I didn't realize the difference until I asked about FRB STCW training and the Safe Manning Doc. Only ro/ro ferries are required to have an FRB, the way I read SOLAS anyway.
DWH's Lifeboat 2 was a rescue boat. It has a different winch and extra door among other things. In theory it was designed to marshal liferafts and pick up people in the water. The problem is getting hooked back up on a semi in any kind of swell. Also consider the maintenance issues of having yet another piece of safety equipment. Many MODU's don't have engineers. I have seen rig mechanics working on an FRB that was out of service drop what they were doing and leave. “The Rig Floor is calling, gotta go.”
Another idea, I have not seen mentioned, is crowd management training for the boat coxwains and muster takers. There are several STCW classes available, mostly designed for cruise ships I believe. I don't know anything about it yet but I intend to look into it for my crew.