Marine radios often more useful than cell phones when on the water

Let's talk about radios - and I don't mean AM/FM entertainment radios with a CD or DVD player. I would like to talk about Marine VHF-FM radios.

When we Auxiliarists do Vessel Safety Checks we ask if you have a marine radio on your vessel. Usually we get a response that you have a cell phone and don't need one. But, maybe you should re-think the cell phone for communications in a maritime environment: marine radios are not required, but they are highly recommended.

First of all, who are you going to call when your boat is sinking, when it is on fire, when you've been involved in a collision, or when you have a medical emergency? You can call

911 and hopefully that operator will then call the Coast Guard and give them your cell phone number so they can call you to find out what your problem is, your position, and then send help. Other considerations with using a cell phone are how well charged your battery is and your position in relation to cell towers: what quality is the coverage wherever you might happen to be? Have you ever had trouble being out of range of a cell tower? That could easily happen on the water even if you're not far offshore.

Second, consider how long it might take the Coast Guard to get to you. If a helicopter is dispatched you might not have long to wait, but if a boat is required then you might have a bit of a wait. Station Tybee's boat might have a long way to go, especially if you're located south of Wassaw Island. The wait could be 45 minutes or longer, during which time, many bad things could happen.

I spent almost four years as a Communications Watch Stander at a USCG station in Florida. As such, I answered all of the tele-

phone and radio calls to the station. I received many "mayday," "SOS, Coast Guard" and "Coast Guard, help me!" calls. No matter how you say it, as long as it's clear that you are in trouble, the Coast Guard is ready to respond and they monitor Channel 16 twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week.

We are fortunate in this area because Coast Guard Station Tybee has a system called "Rescue 21." This system has a series of antennas along the coast that can "triangulate" on radio signals and determine exactly where a call originates. So, if you call on Channel 16, even to contact a fellow boater and arrange to move to a "working channel" to exchange fishing information, the Coast Guard station radio watch stander receives that transmission and is able to see a GPS position on a dedicated computer monitor. Therefore, if you make a "mayday" call your position is immediately shown on Station Tybee's monitor. You really don't need to give them your position, although it's a good idea to back the display up by giving it. The Coast

Guard automatically and immediately knows where to send their boat(s). But here's another advantage in using a marine radio when you have an emergency. When you use a cell phone the only person who can hear you is the person on the other phone. But when you use a marine radio, any other boater monitoring Channel 16 can also hear your call for help. If they are in your area then they should come to your aid. I have received many calls from good samaritans who called and said they were nearby and were going to see what they could do to help, even before the Coast Guard could arrive. This could be your quickest source for help! You could be rescued by a fellow boater and one day return the favor by helping out another boater in distress.

Please consider investing in a marine radio for the sake of your family and other boaters.

For information on free vessel safety checks, safe boating courses, USCGA membership or other boating matters, contact Flotilla 10-2: www.savannahaux.com