Life jackets lead to fewer deaths - the campaign is working
by Joanne Groenenberg, MCA on 17 Jun 2014
The life jacket campaigns are working, says one British study SW
Figures just published by Britain's Casualty Review Panel have suggested that an increase in lifejacket wear has led to fewer deaths.
Twelve British people’s lives might have been saved in 2013 if they had been wearing a lifejacket or buoyancy aid, according to the Panel. However, the number of people who died without a lifejacket/buoyancy aid, who may have lived if they had worn one, has been decreasing since 2007 as the message about the importance of lifejacket use gets through to the public.
The panel has suggested that increasing awareness of the benefits of buoyancy aid and lifejacket wear may have helped to reduce the numbers of lives lost over the last few years.
The Casualty Review Panel meets once a year to discuss the circumstances surrounding fatal maritime incidents, and provides its opinion about whether a lifejacket or buoyancy aid might have saved a person’s life.
This year the panel commented that other safety measures, in addition to buoyancy wear, are important in ensuring safety.
These include:
1. Carrying a means of raising an alarm
2. Getting trained
3. Knowing how to call for help
4. Being suitably dressed
5. Being aware of public rescue equipment at certain locations, and
6. Checking weather conditions and tides.
For the full reports from the Casualty Review Panel please go to https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/lifejacket-fatality-figures
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