Home / Seamanship / Sailing manoeuvres and deck work / Man overboard: the first seconds
Man overboard, the first thirty seconds
A person in the water is hard to see after two minutes, even in a calm sea. So it is not the elegance of the manoeuvre that decides the outcome but what happens in the first seconds.
The first moves
Shout, so everyone knows what has happened. Press the MOB button on the plotter. Throw flotation, even if it looks far off: it marks the spot and it floats.
The lookout
One person points at the casualty with an outstretched arm and does nothing else. No winching, no radio, no helping. Once you break that line of sight, the spot is usually gone.
The manoeuvre
Quick stop or the figure of eight, either works. More important than the choice is that the crew knows one of them and has practised it on a fender once a year. Approach from leeward with the way off the boat.
The recovery
This is the part almost everyone underestimates. A wet adult weighs well over a hundred kilos and can rarely help. If they cannot reach a bathing ladder you need the main halyard, a tackle or a recovery sling, and those have to be ready beforehand.
What this has to do with insurance
This is where boat insurance ends and personal accident cover begins. Liability covers what you do to others, not what happens to you and your crew. Anyone who regularly sails with guests should know that gap and decide deliberately whether to leave it open.
