What are all the emergency signals?

[bilko]

Have to confess that i have no idea so i t's about time i found out. Where better to ask?
Blasts on the whistle, markers and internationaly known distress signs etc. Whether made from fire , piles of clothing or whatever i think it would be good to know them all or at least the common ones to use and their meanings.
Over to you

 

[Bisamratte]

I think for a whistle is six consecutive blasts every min. If you hear this the reply is three every min. I think the same goes for torches.

Andy

 

[BorderReiver]

The whistles and a "V" shape on the ground big enough to be seen from the air.

Oh,shouting "HELP" very loudly helps too.

 

[Englander]

"V" Shape, didnt know that, handy, anyone got anymore? other than SOS morse?

Craig.

 

[Goose]

I think there are few different ones, especially to do with whistle blasts!
I was taught that visual signals whether fires or piles was use three, set in a rough triangle.
And the ubiquitous orange bag!

 

[bogflogger]

International Distress Signal:

6 short blasts on whistle/foghorn a minuite (each blast of one second with a half second gap between blasts).

Exactly the same sequence with torches.

Repeat once a minuite until help arrives (not until someone answers you - they still need to find your location!)

Reply is 3 short blasts a minuite.

This has been proven to be the audible signal that carries the longest distance, especially in Mountains and Woods.

In lowlands and urban areas, it is more likely that SOS will actually be recognised, so use that as well:

DOT DOT DOT.....DASH DASH DASH....DOT DOT DOT

Repeat once a minuite until help arrives.

DO NOT use either of the above signals unless it IS an Emergency!

You can also help rescuers find you by spreading out an International Orange bivvy bag (preferably with you inside it!) and any other Hi-Viz gear you have available.

There are also ground to air recognition signals, using both symbols on the ground and also using body positions............Neither are of any practical value in the UK..........especially in the more populated areas.

DO NOT use ANY distress signal unless it IS an emergency!

 

[Englander]

DO NOT use ANY distress signal unless it IS an emergency!

Amen to that, if you wanna practice, do it underground in a sealed room or something, where no-one can see it or hear it...

Last thing you want on your conscience is emengancy services and other people hauling their asses after you if your just messing about.

Craig.

 

[bilko]

Great, that's one thing i have to get. An orange bivi.

 

[Englander]

Great, that's one thing i have to get. An orange bivi.

Well they are cheap enough, about £2 or something from most places, just a big orange bag, useful for other things aswell, like a large bag liner, they are usually quick heavy though (not heavy, heavy, just heavy for a bag...)

Craig.

 

[scanker]

Repeat once a minuite until help arrives (not until someone answers you - they still need to find your location!)

A good thorough reply, but the above advice is particularly important to remember.

 

[bogflogger]

I have made some Hi-Vis yellow P.U. Nylon stuffbags and rucksack liners.

These are the only lairy coloured bits of gear I have, and were made up precicely because I would be so difficult to see, if I had an accident on the Hill.

I HATE seeing bright red/orange/yellow/blue "dots" all over the Hills, as all the "experts" pose around in their £400.00+ Gore-Tex gear!

Back on the subject of signals, there are also Strobes and Flares available.

A Strobe is probably going to be ignored by pretty much everybody, except in the Mountains........where their range is pretty questionable, especially in bad weather.

Flares are also of very limited use (especially "Pen Flares" ) as they have a very short burn time, plus they will either be ignored as "fireworks" by most people, or in the Mountains be completely invisible after you launch them into the overhead clouds!

As for Ground to Air signals......First of all it requires a Military trained pilot to understand them in the first place!

Secondly, it is very unlikely that even an Ex-Military pilot flying in the UK is going to bother to look for Ground to Air signals anyway.

For this reason they are of no practical value at all.

Quite apart from needing to be at least 5 metres long at the minimum (and who is going to make them if you are injured anyway?) and they also require huge amounts of effort to make.....time which could be spent much more effectively.

 

[BorderReiver]

Anybody mentioned the mobile 'phone?

 

[bogflogger]

Sorry can't get a signal.

 

[Nigel]

All these methods work only if some one is aware you are missing. Try making a route card before you set off, and leave a copy with a responsible person.

 

[BorderReiver]

All these methods work only if some one is aware you are missing. Try making a route card before you set off, and leave a copy with a responsible person.

Ah,the most obvious one.

Sadly so often overlooked.

 

[bogflogger]

In most "Touristy" parts of the UK you can get routecards to fill in, from Police Stations, MRT Centres and National Park Centres.

Better still is to leave a copy with someone Reliable at home, which includes full details of exactly who to contact if you are overdue.

Remember that making a 999 call for Mountain/Cave/Cliff Rescue, or a Lifeboat, will get you put through to an Emergency Call Centre which will be hundreds of miles away and will not know the correct team to contact. :11doh:

So you can save time and wasted effort, by making sure that these details are available in advance.

Finally, MAKE SURE that if you let somebody know that you will be overdue "on Saturday 15th Oct at 20.30" that you LET THEM KNOW you are back safely!

There have been FAR too many Mountain Rescue Team call outs where the "Casualty" has been found sitting in the Pub!

 

[bilko]

Bogflogger are you search and rescue by any chance as i know a few guys do manhunts? and the like on here?
All excellent points mate and luckily i am not completely devoid of common sense ( not being flippant btw ) so i always make arrangments when i go walkabouts.
Hoping to get out to Ashfield Forest again soon to explore my newly read mapreading theory so i will make sure i have a whistle and bivi by that time.
Thinking about it i think the whistle would be the most effective piece of emergency kit for me .

 

[bogflogger]

No, I'm not involved in SAR/MRT any longer......too old and fat now!

You are right about the whistle, a really good one is the Fox 40 which is VERY loud!!!

If you add a decent torch (with spares), a poly bivvy bag and a basic First Aid kit, plus some emergency food, that will cover 99% of likely problems in the UK.

 

[Doc]

'Mayday, mayday, mayday' is the voice procedure equivalent of SOS, primarily used on maritime and aviation frequencies. 'Pan Pan' and 'Securite' are used for lower priority but still above-routine traffic.

The military use, or used, the wonderful phrase 'No Duff' to indicate that the following message was not an exercise!

Distress messages can be sent on any frequency, but the following may be useful. You do need to be sure the antenna is matched to the transmitter - a lot of commercial radios have automatic antenna matching.

Marine VHF Channel 16 156.8MHz FM
Amateur 2m Calling 145.5 MHZ FM
Marine MF 2182 kHz USB
Air VHF 121.5 MHz AM
Alaska Emergency 5.1675 MHz USB
500kHz was the old CW (morse) maritime frequency - now almost abandoned.

Of the amateur HF bands, the 7MHz band is almost always open 24 hours a day (HF propagation varies with day/night, season and sunspot cycle). 7.060 MHz LSB is the emergency centre of activity frequency, and would be worth a try.

 

[JoeG]

Not too sure about the amature thing. It might be ignored. There are alot of people on that will do this for a laugh, but aren't licenced to transmit on that band, and if someone isn't licenced a person that is licence to transmit who talks to the person who isn't i think will have there licence taken away or something along those lines. I know if i heard one i would be very reluctent to answer unless a call sign came after it and i know some that may be the same, but as i say anywhere i have gone even placesrural have had problems with non licenced people trying to block other people. But still worth a try. There are certain freq' that are allecated to raynet and there some kind of emergency services. PMR is always worth a try if your stuck, but only running a small amount of W means that getting out might be a problem.
I only just new about the whistle thing when i read a Ray Mears book.

I'm not saying dont use the amateur freq' because there might be someone that will come back to you.