Dr. Pat Aiu

During a crisis emergency, the doc will have to use the radio. I have an advantage in that I know how to run radios from my military experiences. If you don't already know how to operate a radio, I would advise you to learn. In an emergency, the call is y ours and you must speak one on one to the Coast Guard or Navy Doc in charge, who will then decide if a ship or plane should be sent out, particularly if the distress is farther than 500 miles from land.
Our Coast Guard is good for 600 miles plus or minus a few and the Navy may go further, but generally they like you to be inside of 500 miles. At sea you get help from any source you can. On every island group we visited, I met, talked to and learned the c all sign of every radio operator who came forth. Then at sea, I would call all of them to stay in contact. Since I was the radio operator on board, I felt it was within my job to be able to contact any one.

IF YOU HAVE AN EMERGENCY AT SEA, DO THE FOLLOWING:

1. Turn on your Inmarsat-C/GPS unit to get the canoe's position.[Holding down the emergency button for 5 + seconds sends out a distress signal with the position of the canoe.]

2. Contact your escort boat on channel 16 VHF and describe the emergency and the help you are requesting. Ask the escort boat for help in calling for help from any boat or ship in the area. Watch the voltage of the batteries. If the voltages are below 12 .5, let the escort boat try to call for help on its single-side band radio and save your power for communicating with the escort boat. If the voltages are above 12.5, try 3 and 4.

3. Use the single side-band to contact the US Coast Guard on channels A9-A13 or through KMI on channels B1-B9. Break into any conversation by saying: "MAYDAY! MAYDAY! MAYDAY! This is WBJ3292, Sailing Vessel Hokule'a, Position [Give longitude and latitude in degrees and minutes from GPS unit]," then describe the emergency and the kind of help you are requesting.

4. If you are unable to raise the Coast Guard for some reason, try Peace-Sat at UH Manoa during working hours on Channels C1-C7 (One of these channels will be designated as the priority channel.)

5. If numbers 2, 3, and 4 fail, go to general SOS to any ship in the area.

Six hundred to a thousand miles out from Hawai'i where no one is close or in range, the decision is yours; to turn around, or push for our Coast Guard or Navy safety net, and obviously the condition of your patient would dictate what you decide.

If you are in the vicinity of an island group, then you can if you have kept in touch, call a local radio ham and they can patch to Hawai'i or a facility by phone. You must let someone know if you have an emergency. Often the escort vessel will not have any more luck than you on their radio. If you happen to be in an inversion zone and can not send or receive, the escort will probably be in it too. Just keep trying, don't give up--ever.

Recruit other crew members to help care for the injured or sick. Our guys are sharp and willing to help. It's also a good teaching opportunity and they like to be involved. Snake and Stanley were able assistants when we did skin and ulcer debridement ever y two days the last long trip out. They were really top notch.

Keep yourself fit physically and mentally so you won't go down with anything. Be available on sea and on land, ready to listen, help, treat and comfort. And even if those "Macho" buggers won't usually admit to you, they feel comfortable with their "Doc" a round.