Rule 1
Always Wear Your PFD
The most common excuse people give for blowing off wearing a PFD is "I can swim". It's an attitude that results in more fatalities than any other cause in boating. Swimming for your life in open water is very different than swimming in a pool. It's even harder in rough water. If you aren’t wearing a PFD, you will drown as soon as you can no longer swim or tread water.
In cold water, the danger is extreme because cold shock causes most people to immediately lose control of their breathing. As a result, many of them drown within 6-10 feet of where they entered the water – even though they know how to swim.
Instant Drowning: If cold shock causes a person to gasp while their mouth is underwater, they instantly drown. That particular phenomenon used to be called "Sudden Disappearance Syndrome", and it's worth emphasizing that you don't suddenly disappear and sink to the bottom if you're wearing a properly secured PFD.
It's not enough to simply buy a PFD and wear it. Unless it's properly sized and adjusted, the PFD can rise up around your ears or slip off entirely. This is particularly common in rough water.
If you gasp underwater, you will immediately drown. If you aren't wearing a PFD you will head straight to the bottom.
Sudden Disappearance
Four examples of USCG approved Type 3 PFDs
Poorly Adjusted PFDs
These are well known for slipping off when you raise your arms and wave for help. Especially with children.
Wear It! Most people find it very difficult or impossible to put on their PFD after they wind up in the water - even when that water isn't bitterly cold. Here's a photo of one young man who was rescued after his kayak capsized in the 71F (21.7C) Caloosahatchee River at Ft. Meyers, Florida in mid-March. Every rescuer in that boat knows exactly what happened with his PFD.
Inflatables
Inflatable PFDs, with their lower profile, are gaining in popularity. They come in two varieties, auto-inflating ones that are triggered when they come into contact with water, and manual-inflating ones that are activated by pulling a tab attached to the device. Both types provide greater buoyancy than standard Type III foam PFDs, and users find them easier and more comfortable to wear.
Cautionary Note:
Inflatables have two downsides, and both involve a failure to inflate:
First, because they're mechanical devices that use a CO2 cartridge to provide the inflation, they have to be set up properly and kept in good working condition.
Second, the manual ones have to be activated by the user - a fact that makes them a bad choice for cold water immersion - particularly if the user isn't wearing thermal protection. The mental disorientation experienced by a cold shock victim can result in failure to inflate the PFD in time to prevent drowning. Read about Dr. Mirman's close call.
Many paddleboarders wear a waist-mounted, manually-inflatable PFD that's positioned behind them. This leaves the pull-tab in the most difficult position to grab when activating the device. This is a very significant hazard that's resulted in numerus fatalities.
Floatation Coats and Coveralls
How They Work
Floatation coats and coveralls are waterproof garments that combine protection from the elements with built-in foam insulation. The foam is buoyant, and they're USCG approved as personal floatation devices (PFDs). Because of these characteristics, they're widely used for commercial activities. Think of them as insulated, buoyant raingear.
A Poor Choice For Immersion
The coverall design is frequently advertised as an "anti-exposure suit". That's fine as long as long as you're on land or the deck of a ship, but not when you're neck deep in cold water, trying to survive. Manufacturers say that these garments "delay hypothermia" when the wearer is immersed in cold water. That's a vague and very misleading claim because they're actually a poor choice for protection in the event of cold water immersion.
They're not at all watertight, they can rapidly fill with cold water, and they do nothing to prevent cold shock. Furthermore, at least one popular design provides less than half a CLO of insulation when the wearer is actually in the water. Although they're certainly better than no insulation, they don't provide the same level of protection as a wetsuit or drysuit that's appropriate for the water temperature. They're also definitely not a substitute for a survival suit. See the Rescue and Survival Suit link on our gear page here: Cold Water Gear
CLO Note: "CLO" is a measure of insulation. A CLO value of 0 is equivalent to a naked person. A CLO value of 1 is equal to the amount of clothing required by a resting human to maintain thermal comfort at a room temperature of 71F (21C). It's worth noting that this CLO system doesn't consider the insulating value of fat.
Bonus Article: What PFDs Can and Can't Do
Technical Specs:
Rule 1 Case Histories with Lessons Learned
