MARITIME SAFETY LAUNCHES THE CAMPAIGN: "BRIDGE THE VEST".
Every summer more than 10,000 people are in emergency situations at sea.
The initiative seeks to raise awareness of the importance of using a life jacket when practicing nautical activities.
August 3, 2017
Maritime Rescue is launching a campaign on Social Networks this summer to encourage the use of a life jacket when sailing or practicing water sports.
Grouped under the hashtag #CampañaPonteElChaleco, advice is published through Twitter (@salvamentogob) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/salvamentomaritimo.es), in order to raise awareness about the importance of using the vest when it comes to reducing the accident rate.
Every summer more than 10,000 people (more than 80 a day) are in an emergency situation at sea.
Sailing in pleasure boats, sport fishing, windsurfing, kitesurfing, surfing, water skiing, jet skiing; The number of people who practice these activities at sea increases enormously in the summer and emergencies skyrocket.
For this reason, and with the aim of reducing emergency situations, Maritime Rescue is reinforcing the dissemination of safety culture on social networks, a channel that allows us to directly reach the public interested in nautical activities, in addition to interaction with the.
More than half of emergencies are recreational boating:
The majority of boats assisted during the summer by Maritime Rescue are pleasure boats. In 2016 there were 1,502, which represents 69% of the total.
In the last four years, attendance on this type of boat has been increasing. In 2016 there was an increase of 8% compared to the previous year. Catalonia and the Balearic Islands are the Autonomous Communities where the most assistance to pleasure boats is carried out.
The most common incident in recreational boating is “ship adrift”, followed by groundings, leaks, capsizes and fires.
It must be taken into account that the use of the life jacket on board, by all crew members and at all times; minimizes accidents in case the boat is involved in any type of emergency.
Falls into the sea from land:
On the other hand, in the case of activities such as fishing from the coast or cliffs, it is recommended to always use a life jacket, since in the event of a fall into the sea it allows you to stay afloat effortlessly and be located more easily.
It is worth highlighting that in the summer of 2016, 89 people were recorded falling from the ground, of which a third died.
Besides the #PutOnTheVestCampaign, all kinds of action tips and safety rules are also given that are tagged with hashtags: #NauticalSecurity y #Summer2017.
Likewise, the Maritime Rescue website offers the possibility of consulting safety tips for nautical activities:
http://www.salvamentomaritimo.es/seguridadnautica/
