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11
Making an Emergency Call
Emergency calls are made on Channel
16 because it is monitored by marine
radio owners. In many areas, the
Coast Guard monitors Channel 16 24-
hours a day.
There are three levels of emergency
calls:
•The
Mayday
distress signal is for
the most severe situations and is
used when there is grave and
imminent danger to people and/or
a vessel. Mayday has priority over
all other calls.
•The
Pan-Pan
urgency signal is the
second level of emergency and is
used when people or vessels are
in jeopardy.
•The
Security
safety signal is the
third level of emergency and is
used for messages about the
safety of navigation or important
weather warnings.
Follow these steps to make a distress
call.
1. Turn on the radio, and select
Channel 16.
2. Set the output power to
5W
(5
watts).
3. Hold the transceiver about 3
inches from your mouth, and
press the push-to-talk button.
4. Say, “Mayday-Mayday-Mayday!
This is (
your call sign and name of
your boat)
, (
your call sign and
name of your boat)
, (
your call sign
and name of your boat)
, Mayday
(
name of your boat).
”
5. Then give the following informa-
tion:
• Your location, including any
navigational aids or landmarks
• The nature of your emergency
• The number of people on the
boat and the condition of any
injured
• The estimated seaworthiness of
your boat
• A brief description of your boat
length, type, color, and so forth
6. To end the message, say “I will be
listening on Channel 16. This is
(your call sign or name of your
boat)
. Over.”
7. Release the push-to-talk button
and listen.
8. Someone should answer. If not,
repeat the call beginning with
Step 3.
Use this same basic procedure for
transmitting urgent and safety signals,
substituting
Pan-Pan
and
Security
in
place of
Mayday
, and providing appro-
priate information.
19-1004.fm Page 11 Tuesday, August 3, 1999 9:11 AM