Boating: How to Boat: Basics
Visual Distress Signals
Equipment Requirements - Visual Distress Signals
Pyrotechnic Devices
Non-Pyrotechnic Devices
Visual Distress Signals
All vessels used on coastal
waters, the Great Lakes, territorial seas, and those waters connected
directly to them, up to a point where a body of water is less than two
miles wide, must be equipped with U.S.C.G. Approved visual distress
signals. Vessels owned in the United States operating on the high seas
must be equipped with U.S.C.G. Approved visual distress
signals.
The following vessels are not required to carry day
signals but must carry night signals when operating from sunset to
sunrise:
- Recreational boats less than 16 feet in length.
- Boats participating in organized events such as races, regattas, or
marine parades.
- Open sailboats less than 26 feet in length not equipped with
propulsion machinery.
- Manually propelled boats.
Pyrotechnic Devices
Pyrotechnic Visual Distress Signals must be Coast Guard
Approved, in serviceable condition, and readily accessible.
- They are marked with an expiration date. Expired signals may be carried
as extra equipment, but can not be counted toward meeting the visual
distress signal requirement, since they may be unreliable.
- Launchers manufactured before January 1, 1981, intended for use with
approved signals, are not required to be Coast Guard Approved.
- If pyrotechnic devices are selected a minimum of three are required.
That is, three signals for day use and three signals for night. Some
pyrotechnic signals meet both day and night use requirements.
- Pyrotechnic devices should be stored in a cool, dry location, if possible.
- A watertight container painted red or orange and prominently marked
"DISTRESS SIGNALS" or "FLARES" is recommended.
U.S.C.G. Approved Pyrotechnic Visual Distress Signals and associated devices include:
- Pyrotechnic red flares, handheld or aerial.
- Pyrotechnic orange smoke, handheld or floating.
- Launchers for aerial red meteors or parachute flares.
[Each of these devices has a different operating (burning) time x seconds to y seconds.
Check the label to see how long each pyrotechnic device will actually be illuminated. This will
allow you to select a warning device better suited to the conditions where your boat will operate.]
Non-Pyrotechnic Devices
Non-Pyrotechnic Visual Distress Signals must be in
serviceable condition, readily accessible, and certified by the
manufacturer as complying with U.S.C.G. requirements.
They include:
Orange distress flag
- Day signal only.
- Must be at least 3 x 3 feet with a black square and ball on an orange
background.
- Must be marked with an indication that it meets Coast Guard requirements
in 46 CFR 160.072.
- Most distinctive when attached and waved on a paddle, boat hook, or
flown from a mast.
- May also be incorporated as part of devices designed to attract attention
in an emergency, such as balloons, kites, or floating streamers.
Electric distress light
- Accepted for night use only
- Automatically flashes the international SOS distress signal (... --- ...)
- Must be marked with an indication that it meets Coast Guard requirements
in 46 CFR 161.013.
Under Inland Navigation Rules, a high intensity white light flashing at regular
intervals from 50-70 times per minute is considered a distress signal. Such
devices do NOT count toward meeting the visual distress signal requirement, however.
Regulations prohibit display of
visual distress signals on the water under any circumstances except when
assistance is required to prevent immediate or potential danger to persons
on board a vessel.
All distress signals have distinct
advantages and disadvantages. No single device is ideal under all
conditions or suitable for all purposes. Pyrotechnics are universally
recognized as excellent distress signals. However, there is potential for
injury and property damage if not properly handled. These devices produce
a very hot flame and the residue can cause burns and ignite flammable
materials.
Pistol launched and handheld parachute flares and
meteors have many characteristics of a firearm and must be handled with
caution. In some states they are considered a firearm and prohibited from
use.
The following are just a few of the variety and combination of
devices which can be carried in order to meet the requirements:
- Three handheld red flares (day and night).
- One handheld red flare and two parachute flares (day and night).
- One handheld orange smoke signal, two floating orange smoke signals
(day) and one electric distress light (night only).
All boaters should be able to signal for help.
Boaters must have current dated U.S.C.G. Approved day and night signals
for all boats operating on coastal and open bodies of water.
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