When should I use VHF radio to call for help, and what should I say?
I have a fixed DSC VHF on my sailing yacht, but I have never made an emergency call. If the engine fails, someone is injured or we start taking on water, when should I call and exactly what should I say?
Answer
Use Mayday when your boat or someone aboard faces grave and imminent danger and needs immediate assistance; use Pan-Pan for an urgent safety problem that has not reached that stage. Make the voice call on VHF Channel 16, giving your boat's identity, position, what has happened, the help needed and how many people are aboard.
Judge the danger
Check that everyone is accounted for and whether the boat is drifting towards danger, flooding or burning. These facts determine the call. An engine failure offshore in calm weather is very different from the same failure outside a harbour entrance with an onshore wind.
- Mayday: uncontrolled flooding, a serious fire, a person overboard whose recovery is uncertain, or imminent grounding on a dangerous shore. A life-threatening injury or illness can also justify Mayday.
- Pan-Pan: disabled and drifting but presently clear of danger, steering failure with time and sea room, or an injury needing urgent medical advice without an immediate threat to life.
- Routine assistance: an engine that will not start while you are safely secured to a mooring. Call the harbour, marina or assistance provider on its published working channel.
Call early if the situation is deteriorating. You do not have to exhaust every repair attempt first. If you are unsure how serious it is, describe the circumstances clearly to the coastguard or coastal radio station. In Danish waters, Lyngby Radio monitors Channel 16 around the clock.
Send the alert, then speak
If your radio has Digital Selective Calling, check that it shows a valid GPS position and has your boat's nine-digit MMSI programmed. An alert without position information is much less useful, but do not delay a distress call to troubleshoot electronics.
- For a Mayday, lift the red DISTRESS cover. Select the distress type if time allows, then press and hold the button for the countdown specified by your radio, commonly about five seconds.
- Select or confirm Channel 16 for the voice call. Use high power on a fixed set, normally 25 W, when calling for emergency assistance.
- Hold the microphone a few centimetres from your mouth, press the transmit button, pause briefly and speak slowly. Release the button to hear replies.
The DSC alert does not replace your spoken message. With a basic VHF or handheld without DSC, go straight to the voice call. Anyone may make an emergency call if necessary, including an uncertificated crew member taking over from an incapacitated skipper.