CCA Fleet Surgeon Memorandum for Offshore Passages
Jeffrey S. Wisch, M.D.*
We offer several types of article covering a wide range of topics. Choose your topic or article type below:
- Feature Articles. Discussions of one or more topics regarding Seamanship, Safety, and best practices afloat.
- School of Hard Rocks. First-person narratives of ... challenging ... experiences and lessons learned.
- Safety Moments. Short items suitable for a quick read or presentation to a group.
- White Papers. In-depth dives into topics of interest.
- Travelogs. Stories of near and far journeys afloat, including selected articles from our Voyages magazine
- Videos. A growing library of streaming content, from weather seminars to member highlights.
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School of Hard Rocks
Subject:
Heavy Weather
“From the CCA School of Hard Rocks
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School of Hard Rocks
Subject:
Culture of Safety, Good Practices Underway
“Safety Moments, presented at CCA Stations and Posts”
By Chuck Hawley, San Francisco Station, May 2023
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Voyages
Subject:
Narratives
From Spain to Maine to Ukraine. A wide-ranging collection of narratives in the post-COVID era.
Read about it here
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Safety Moment
Subject:
Emergencies
The weather at the ramp was sunny and clear, yet lightning struck the son standing on the bow. The lightning bolt came in his tail bone and out his foot. The son immediately went overboard and started to sink. The father jumped overboard and…
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School of Hard Rocks
Subject:
Dinghy Management
It was low tide. I needed to navigate shallow water to get to my usual tie up spot. I did what I frequently do in this situation, turning around to lift the idling motor into the shallow water setting. The new motor we bought this year doesn’t raise…
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School of Hard Rocks
Subject:
Medical, Dinghy Management, Overboard
Beware the Dinghy
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Safety Moment
Subject:
Culture of Safety, Preparation of Boat and Crew
But what about the resolutions we make with regard to the safe operation of our own sailboats and cruisers? How many times have you heard a fellow voyager say “Ya know, the next time we’re out, we ought to do a man overboard drill” or “I need to…
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Safety Moment
Subject:
Overboard
A passenger on a Carnival Cruise Ship, traveling from New Orleans to Cozumel, was reported missing about 13 hours after he was last seen onboard. A search ensued, and the passenger was spotted by a commercial vessel, which then relayed the…
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School of Hard Rocks
Subject:
Fire/Flooding
About 30 minutes later we were startled to see about 6 inches of water all along the low side from the galley forward along the settee berth and the floorboards were beginning to float. We removed them, turned on two electric pumps, and began…
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School of Hard Rocks
Subject:
Good Practices Underway
A short trip becomes a near disaster by ignoring engine alarms.
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School of Hard Rocks
Subject:
Preparation of Boat and Crew
I took down the radio panel and, with a multimeter in hand, was able to determine that the stereo wasn’t getting its 12 volts. When I improvised a 12-volt supply, it came to life. Progress, but a mystery remained behind the dead 12-volt supply line…
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School of Hard Rocks
Subject:
Preparation of Boat and Crew
After sitting next to Stan for about an hour, I stood up to stretch and get some blood flowing in my legs. As I did, I heard the faint but unmistakable snap of a circuit breaker going from the On to the Off position, followed by the sound of an…
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Feature Article
Subject:
Culture of Safety, Seamanship and Awareness
Good seamanship should include the ability to assess, address, and anticipate. The best offshore sailors use sight, smell, hearing, and feel to monitor what is going on below, on deck and in the wider environment for whatever may come next.…
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Feature Article
Subject:
Emergencies
Former Navy Captain Mark Lenci suggests how the principles of handling emergencies on large ship can be applied to smaller private yachts – yachts capable of being cruised comfortably by two people. The principles can be easily extended to crews of…
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Safety Moment
Subject:
Overboard
Typical MOB situations (dark, rough seas) may make maneuvering the rescuing vessel tricky. The development of the Lifesling and similar devices assists in recovering a person in the water without having to get dangerously close.