Essentials of Sea Survival PDF

Essentials of Sea Survival contains original scientific research and investigations from two internationally recognized experts on cold-water survival. In addition to having practical personal experience with cold water immersion, Frank Golden and Michael Tipton regularly lecture at various international conferences about water survival, and they are frequently called on for expert commentary on television and radio.

The majority of books on this subject are personal survival accounts; few relate to scientific studies. This book is different: Using reader-friendly language, two leading environmental physiologists present the facts and dispel the myths of surviving a sea accident. The book, thanks to the real-life stories and easy-to-read format, will appeal primarily to the layperson who works or plays on or near the water. The text will also be of interest to an academic audience, who will appreciate the original research and up-to-date physiological and medical information

Essentials of Sea Survival is a compelling, informative, and comprehensive guide to open-water survival. Drawing from classic maritime disasters and personal accounts of near-miraculous survival, as well as carefully controlled laboratory experiments, it offers practical advice for avoiding as well as surviving a cold-water accident. It’s an important reference for anyone associated with open-air aquatic activities, such as members of the Coast Guard, Navy, and Marines; offshore oil rig employees; fishermen; divers; amateur and professional sailors; water safety instructors and life guards; water rescue personnel; boaters; water skiers; outdoor survival course instructors; and other recreational water sports enthusiasts.

Chapter 1. Introduction: A Catalogue of Disaster
Chapter 2. The Problems the Body Faces in a Survival
Chapter 3. Behavioural Thermoregulation
Chapter 4. Initial and Short-term Immersion
Chapter 5. Drowning and Near-drowning
Chapter 6. Hypothermia
Chapter 7. Survival Time in Cold Water    
Chapter 8. Necessities for Sustained Survival: Water and Food
Chapter 9. Castaways: Survival in an Open Boat or Lifecraft
Chapter 10. Illnesses, Injuries and Psychological Trauma
Chapter 11. Search and Rescue and Treatment of Casualties

Dr. Frank Golden spent 30 years as a medical officer in the British Royal Navy, retiring in 1993 with the rank of Rear Admiral. During his naval career he directed the Navy’s survival medical research department and was the consultant advisor to the Royal Navy in applied physiology. He also advised other government departments and interested bodies, including the UN International Maritime Organization (IMO), the branch of the United Nations responsible for internationally agreed maritime legislation and regulation, on matters relating to the medical aspects of survival. He gained firsthand experience by conducting both laboratory and open-water evaluation tests. These included spending a week adrift in a life raft on the open sea, living only on survival rations.

Golden received his MD in 1960 from the National University of Ireland in Cork and his PhD in 1979 from the University of Leeds, where he studied the physiological changes in immersion hypothermia with special reference to factors that may be responsible for death in the early rewarming phase. He has received numerous awards, including the Order of the British Empire, presented by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, for his services to survival at sea; a Gilbert Blane Medal from the Royal College of Surgeons for his research in post immersion death; an honorary fellowship at the Nautical Institute in London; and a Stewart Memorial Prize from the Royal Aeronautical Society for rescue of immersion victims.

Golden is currently a consultant advisor in human and applied physiology at the University of Portsmouth. He is also chairman of the Medical & Survival Committee of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution. He was a member of both the Royal Navy Lifesaving Committee and the Royal Navy Personal Research (Survival at Sea) Committee, and he is a freelance advisor to a number of organizations on matters pertaining to survival at sea. In his free time Dr. Golden enjoys playing golf, sailing, and fishing. He lives in Gosport, England, with his wife, Jenny.

Professor Michael Tipton has spent more than 17 years researching and advising in survival at sea and thermoregulation in heat and cold environments; and he has published more than 150 scientific papers, reports, and book chapters in these areas. In addition to his various university positions, Professor Tipton has been based at the Institute of Naval Medicine (INM) since 1983 and has been consultant head of the INM’s environmental medicine unit since 1996. He is currently a professor of human and applied physiology at the University of Portsmouth.

In 1986 Tipton received his PhD, with a focus on human adaptiation to cold, from the University of London. From 1995 to 2001 he was a member of the Defence Scientific Advisory Council. In 1998 he received the U.S. Aerospace Medical Association’s Joseph L. Haley Award for the best published paper in rotary wing aviation. Like Golden, Tipton has interviewed shipwreck survivors and conducted experiments to identify the precise physiological mechanisms that cause the adverse reactions sea survivors encounter, then used this information to formulate solutions. He has researched and developed new survival equipment, such as helicopter passenger underwater escape aids.

Tipton is a member of several national and international committees and edits the international scientific journals Ergonomics and International Journal of Biometeorology. He provides advice to a range of universities; government departments; industries; and medical, search and rescue, and media organizations. Professor Tipton spends his leisure time playing rugby, swimming, and practicing photography. He and his wife, Carole, live in Gosport, England.

“The mix of hard science, the authors’ own extensive research, and examinations of real-life survival accounts, both historic and recent, provide intensely practical recommendations for all likely emergencies at sea. I’ve found no other source that combines the research, experience, common sense and practical information found in Essentials of Sea Survival. Everyone that uses open water for work or recreation should read this book.”
Dr. Ian Mackie
Retired medical chairman
International Life Saving Federation

“If you are going to be on the water, you need a survival strategy. This book tells you just what you need for developing one, and how to make it work.”
B. Chris Brewster
Former lifeguard chief
Editor, The United States Lifesaving Association Manual of Open Water Lifesaving

“Essentials of Sea Survival clearly explains how the body reacts to the stress and shock of a sea accident. Knowing this information can help you formulate a risk assessment and survival strategy so that your chances of survival can be improved when you’re faced with an unfortunate event at sea.”
Tony Mooney
Technical manager, Australian Yachting Federation
Member ORC Special Regulations Committee