White Water Safety and Rescue

The writing of this book started when I tried to put some notes together as course notes for the safety and rescue courses I was running at Plas y Brenin. It soon became clear what a huge topic it is and in sheer frustration I explained to a friend that I would have to write a book to cover it properly. His answer was, "Why don't you?" This is the result. I hope you find it enjoyable and informative. Learning About Safety and Rescue The point of safety and rescue training is that there is rarely the time to develop a technique during a life threatening emergency. Paddlers must already be in possession of a range of techniques that will allow them to solve the problem quickly. There isn't the time to re-invent the wheel. New techniques are often developed in training and practise situations. There are three parts to becoming a safe and effective paddler and rescuer: 1. Knowledge 2. Training 3. Experience This book can only provide the knowledge. It is important that the reader should consider attending practical safety and rescue courses in order to evaluate a range of techniques under controlled conditions. This will also ensure that the techniques are fully and correctly understood. For those who already have a good deal of training and experience the book will be useful as an 'aide-memoire', and probably cover some areas that are new to the reader. Practise Like all skills, safety and rescue skills need to be practised; initially to become competent and thereafter to maintain competence. Great care should be taken in selecting suitable sites, where the skills can be practised in controlled conditions. Nothing could be worse than to be, or see a friend, injured whilst practising how to stay safe! It is also important to try and practise as a team with the people you normally paddle with. Structure This book is in four parts. The order they are in reflects the importance that I attach to them. Part One deals with safety, which is about staying out of trouble in the first place. Part Two is about rescuing people. This is what we do when our safety has failed. Part Three is about caring for and evacuating people who are physically or emotionally injured. Part Four is primarily about recovering equipment.