PPRuNe Forums - View Single Post - Helicopter crash off the coast of Newfoundland - 18 aboard, March 2009
Old 13th Mar 2009, 05:23
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Auxair
 
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: U.S.
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My heart goes out to those missing, those lost and their families.
It sounds like a miracle that even one person was recovered alive
from the scene.

The water and air temperatures and wave action that were reported
made it terribly inhospitable for survival, especially after traumatic ditching
that sounds, by the size of the debris field, to be more like a crash
than a controlled ditching.

The 406mhz personal EPIRBS are water activated so if there are individuals afloat on the surface with these units attached to their immersion suits, they would normally be pinging. I would imagine the
406 ELT on the ship was also water-activated and should be active as well.

Having had some cold water immersion survival instruction from the
US Coast Guard, the facts of exceptionally cold water survival are very straightforward and harsh. It is drilled into students that all garments/undergarments under one's immersion suit
need to be wool or fleece and absolutely not cotton to avoid
cold-saturation to the skin within the suit that occurs when cotton becomes wet (from sweat or water) and cannot dry itself-its terrible for wicking.

Here's to hoping for some of those EPIRB's being heard...and comfort to the families of those who have not yet returned to shore. May the Lord's peace be with them all.
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