Cold Water Life Raft Training: Coast Guard Accredited Courses

The U.S. Coast Guard accredits training for life raft use in cold water conditions developed by the Alaska Marine Safety Education Association, the U.S. Marine Safety Association and the New Jersey Marine Sciences Consortium.

Regulations

• Life raft training is required for commercial fisherman under the Commercial Fishing Vessel Safety Act of 1988. Prior to the implementation of this legislation there was no federal regulation in the U.S. for training individuals in life saving equipment, including life rafts.

Instructors

• Training in marine personal safety equipment for instructors is completed during a six and a half day course which includes 48 hours of training and costs around $550 as of February 2011. Included in this training is the correct use of life rafts as personal safety equipment in cold water environments.

Training

• Eighteen and 10 hour training courses are also available using the curriculum developed by the Alaska Marine Safety Education Association for individuals wishing to learn marine survival skills. Included in this training is practical life raft use experience, and the course costs around $200.