Right, who has been unlucky and got a ducking wearing a self righting lifejacket. What is safer, or more dangerous? A traditional shoulder bag or a rucksack when the jacket expands? Did the straps cause problems, or the bag weight cause problems. If no one answers then I know both bags are lethal! Any answers or ideas, even theories?
Both could be dangerous. If your say a barbel angler fishing a flood in winter and carrying a couple of pound of lead in the bag then this wil help to pull you under.
I suppose the bag would be safest by the fact it would be easier to get of.
Pete, Blimey, what a can of worms! It's all 'ifs and buts'. I think that you have to consider the options: Life jacket, also called a life preserver or a buoyancy aid.
A life jacket is designed to be worn uninflated without any restriction to inflate, it will also turn you upright onto your back should you take a dive, great if you have been knocked unconscious They will also keep you afloat regardless of the weight of your clothing. They will make swimming difficult but then swimming should be done on your back , feet pointing downstream to fend off obstacles (Safe swim position). These are great for non swimmers. A buoyancy aid does just that, it aids buoyancy. It is worn already deployed so gear can be worn over the top of it, I think generally they are rated at about 50 Newtons, which will keep you above neutral buoyancy so really you should be a swimmer. They will not right you if you are unconcious and the weight of your clothing will have an effect. If you are wearing a rucksack/Bergen, this will have the effect of turning you face down in the water as supprisingly, they are quite buoyant at least for long enough to drown you! So there are your options. I am not one for the' Nanny state' but I do believe in informed decisions.
Sorry if I have gone on, but I can only base this on my experience as a Swift water technician in the fire service and of a good few years spent in the Army. Also, it is a good idea to carry with you a floating throwline of about 15m long if you fish rivers and please respect weirs, people don't understand just how dangerous they are (they can trap you underwater whilst spinning you).
Peter, the key words here are 'a self righting lifejacket'. Such a jacket will only work properly if it can inflate without hindrance. If, due to restrictions by bag straps etc, part of it fails to inflate, or only partly inflate, its self-righting ability will be compromised to a greater or lesser extent. This could be fatal if you are unconcious. If you are in a situation where a lifejacket is required then you shouldn't really be wearing anything which could compromise its performance. I speak from experience, in the 1970's a number (15 I think) of Scottish paras were killed on exercise in Germany. Some drowned in the Kiel canal when they got the order to jump before the drop zone was reached. I was part of the drop zone medical cover. When the bodies were recovered it was found that some of the guys had put personal items (cigarettes, mars bars, berets etc) inside their lifejacket bags to keep them dry. As a result some lifejackets failed to inflate or only partly inflated. It's a long story and I won't go into the rest of it but the moral is clear - restricting a lifejacket's performance is bad news.
Thanks Angler saxon,got the message,travel light and keep the bag or ruc in the car, or hidden away on the bank. Let the equipment do its job. Also 15 meters of lifeline tucked down the front of waders will be tried, thanks Wilko. Although most of the time there is no-one to throw to. Maybe lassoo something (the snoozing bailiff?). It is rivers mostly I fish, and wade upstream, carrying flask, tackle and grub, jacket or fleece too in the bag. Or lochs with steep drop offs. I considered firing off 2 air cylinders to test the effects (in summer) and lash out £40 plus to replace them, but my fishing pal suggested wearing both bags in the test, and halving the result! Awesome brain that fella! Thanks for the input, I knew someone would have experience,but I am sad that drop zones are still costing lives. Thank you all.
