Biomechanics and Medicine in Swimming XI

for this paper is a combination of operational experience from the East
Africa region and field material derived from a safety at sea project initiated
by the Lake Victoria Basin Commission. It is therefore based upon
participatory observations, interviews, and in regard to the legislative
background, a review of relevant rules and regulations. Case studies are
presented of a SAR non-governmental organization from the developed
world and one from the developing world.
descrIPtIon oF sAr orGAnIZAtIons: FroM A
deVeloPed countrY And FroM A deVeloPInG
countrY
SAR operations are dependent on an equation based on survivability
and time. Survivability is a function of local conditions like water temperature,
ability to swim, and the use of life saving equipment. This part
of the equation thus provides us with an idea of how long a person in
distress can survive. Time is a function of distance and speed of the
rescuer. Put very simply the two are linked together; the longer the
survivability the longer the time the rescue mission can take, either to
cover longer distances or performing with lesser speed. On Lake Victoria,
for example, with an average water temperature of 24-26 degrees
centigrade, the problem of hypothermia is not an immediate concern.
However, with limited swimming ability and experience, and the lack of
personal flotation devices (life jackets) or other life saving devices, survivability
is still low. Paired with an almost total lack of rescue capacity
the situation becomes very serious.
A recent example from a ferry accident on Lake Victoria shows a
less than 50% survivability even though many local fishermen came to
the rescue - 26 of 50 passengers drowned. Here the SAR organization
has a task to fill, decreasing the number of accidents and increasing the
survivability when an accident does occur. Being in place with dedicated
resources for search and rescue, it can also save lives when all the other
initiatives have been fruitless.
SAR organisations are in many countries run as voluntary organisations,
or as Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO’s). A nongovernmental
SAR association can assume full responsibility for all
SAR operations in coastal waters, with special emphasis on saving lives
among the fishing population or leisure boaters (the non IMO fleet).
Operating models for this are available in several countries around the
world. The normal setup is a national association with a small coordinating
head office, also responsible for fundraising. The SAR stations
are locally administered units supported by the mother organization.
There exist different examples of levels of governmental support and
the share of voluntary involvement. In Norway the government supports
the Norwegian Sea Rescue Society enabling it to run 24 permanently
manned rescue stations. Another 14 rescue stations are manned
with trained voluntary crews funded by memberships and donations.
In Sweden, the Swedish Sea Rescue Society (SSRS), founded in 1907,
and hence having celebrated it’s 100 th anniversary in 2007, is one of the
world’s leading independent SAR organizations. The SSRS operates
approximately 64 rescue stations with about 140 rescue craft manned
by some 1800 volunteers. All boats have been financed through private
donations from individuals and organisations or through local fundraising.
This model is extremely successful; taking care of more than 70%
of all emergencies relayed through the Maritime Rescue Coordination
Center (MRCC) in Gothenburg. The Swedish Sea Rescue Society
receives no contributions at all from taxes or public funds, but is exempted
from value added tax in regard to costs directly related to SAR
operations. The examples above have one thing in common; the volunteer
part of the work is performed by individuals with basically a stable
income and a permanent living place. Their engagement replaces other
leisure activities; instead of playing tennis you spend a couple of hours a
week maintaining the rescue boat and training with the rest of the crew.
Your professional life allows you to be on stand-by and to man the rescue
boat within 15 minutes from a call-out. This can be compared to a
“Volunteer Fire Brigade”. Furthermore, the potential “clients” have the
chaPter6.medicineandwatersafety
financial strength to contribute to the organization through donations,
gifts and/or membership.
In developing countries the living conditions are different, something
that has to have an impact on how a rescue service is set up. A
permanent and paid professional crew is required to ensure that there
is a guaranteed core of competence. This will enable the SAR service
to build competence, to maintain a high level of training and over time
gain necessary experience. Complemented with a group of volunteers in
training, to be used for activities in addition to the core SAR operations;
this combination will create flexibility, redundancy, and a high state of
preparedness.
In December 2006 the first volunteer rescue station in East Africa
was launched as a part of the National Lake Rescue Institute (NLRI)
in Uganda. As a true development station it went into operation on the
border lake between Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo,
Lake Albert. The station itself was built upon two 40 ft steel containers
and the rescue craft a locally built wooden boat with a 25 hp outboard
engine. The crew was initially all volunteer local fishermen trained by
an international SAR volunteer from the Swedish Sea Rescue Society.
Since its establishment the Lake Albert rescue station in Kaiso alone
has saved more than 255 people in distress (no data exist however, for
people saved by wearing an NLRI lifejacket). For the NLRI this establishment
was a milestone. After nearly five years of struggle the first
station outside its headquarters was at last in operation. Soon to follow
was a partnership station with the Ugandan Wildlife Authority (UWA)
in Queen Elisabeth National Park, where the equipment and training
were provided by NLRI and the crew consisted of UWA park rangers.
Since then more stations have followed, partnership stations as well as
independent stations, and today more than 50 crew members have been
trained towards an internationally accepted standard.
Putting the NLRI initiative in perspective it initially focused on
Lake Victoria, where the number of casualties ranges up to an estimated
5000 per year. A trained crew, based on NLRI headquarter employed
personnel, manned a small boat with a 25 hp outboard engine based just
outside the Ugandan capital, Kampala. When a corporate social responsibility
project, financed by a multinational oil company, was negotiated,
the focus turned temporarily to Lake Albert. In this area oil prospecting
was taking place and the oil company wanted to manifest its presence
by contributing to the local community. Supporting the NLRI existing
community based initiatives to establish a rescue service on that lake
was one of the chosen projects. Financing the rescue station as such was
the first step, recruiting and training a crew towards an international
standard as first responders to maritime and environmental emergencies
was the second, and finally sea safety awareness training and information,
the third. The latter was performed with the station and the crew
as a platform. In addition to the emergency response capability the local
spin-off has since become obvious; life vest production and promotion,
fishermen’s clubs, football tournaments, kids’ sea safety training and information
etc. Without a sustainable financial solution it is unlikely that
the development will continue and the death rate on the great lakes
will continue to be appallingly high. Currently a project funded by the
African Development Bank is attempting to find a private-public partnership
solution to this very problem, but eventually it will depend on
political will and involvement.
dIscussIon
The case study above shows that local initiatives can make a difference.
For commercial traffic, operating within the framework of IMO regulations,
governmental organizations can enforce international safety regulations
thus decreasing the accident rate and the need of SAR operations.
Operating offshore furthermore increases the need of equipment
suitable for the specific environment of the high seas, and this activity
is more suitable for a governmental body. However, in other waters and
for other categories of maritime activities, the non-governmental SAR
organization is a vital complement; cooperating with (and within) the
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