Teacher Logbook:
Saturday, July 29, 2000

During our last safety drill it was suggested that we try on our Survival Suits. If we had to abandon the ship we wouldn't survive the cold Pacific Ocean water without this one-piece special suit. The suit is made of a very thick wet suit type of material. As you can see from the picture, it zips up the front and cinch straps are used to tighten the suit at the ankles, wrists and under the chin. An inflatable head support, with an attached inflation tube, can be inflated by mouth. The head support keeps your head above water even if you are unconscious. A cord attaches a whistle to the front zipper to signal your location. The suit has a flashlight on one shoulder and reflective tape to make someone in the water easier to find. In just the short time we had the suit on we became very hot.

The other piece of safety equipment that we checked out was the safety shower/eye wash unit. Several of these units can be found throughout the ship. The showers and eyewashes are used for chemical spills or clothing fires if necessary. Our picture is of an outside unit, but there are also several units inside. Other pieces of safety equipment include large carbon dioxide fire extinguishers for electrical fires and dry chemical fire extinguishers to smother other fires. In case of smoke, Breathing Apparatus tanks and fire fighting suits are available throughout the ship. There are special damage control lockers with special tools and meters for checking for harmful gases, and shoring tools to repair any hull damage on a temporary basis. What are the little hinged doors at the bottom of every hallway door? In case of fire, the fire hose is fed through the small, hinged door. This prevents smoke from traveling from one place to another and lets less air circulate into a burning area.

Mary Beth in her survival suit (not the easiest thing to get around in).

Carol at one of the safety showers available throughout the ship.