Out in the Cold

Prepare now before taking your tow North.

Keeping comfortable while working in cold weather should be a major consideration before getting on deck when the temperatures are below freezing.  If you have ever worked under such conditions, you know what I mean. 

It is not only a matter of personal comfort, but it also becomes a safety issue.  Your mind is not going to focus on the job at hand when you are shivering and trying to keep your body warm. 

From your head to your toes, every body part should be covered according to the weather around you.  Step one in keeping warm is working with layers.  Keeping your body heat close to you with layers of thin clothing is the start to staying warm. 

Start at the core.....Long underwear keeps air close to your skin, helping to trap body heat.  Traditional cotton long underwear, tops and bottoms are great inexpensive additions to your cold weather outfitting.   High tech gear such as Under Armour® have the added ability to wick moisture away from your skin.   

The next layers should be decided upon by looking at the expected temperature and atmospheric conditions.  Continue to concentrate on your body core.  I like to add a fleece vest as an additional core insulator as the temperatures drop. Work outward, adding layers and  stopping at an appropriate level.

On the coldest days, an outer layer of insulated coveralls may complete your outfitting.  Rain gear of course can go over the top if needed to keep out moisture.

Since 20 to 30 percent of your heat loss can go through your head, it is important to keep it covered with some form of headgear. A knit cap is a perfect example of that and is worn to keep the head and ears protected from the cold weather.

The only downfall to a knit cap is that it only covers a small area of your head. A knit ski mask can be used to keep your neck, ears, nose, and mouth warm.  Ski masks should especially be used in situations where there is an intense wind chill factor and added protection is needed.

Another essential item needed to keep warm is a good pair of insulated gloves. Start again with layers by using glove liners.  It is difficult to work with tools, valves etc. when your hands are cold.  It does not take long at freezing temperatures for you hands to have difficulty working.

Of course the feet need the right gear to keep them warm.  The soles of your boots are in direct contact with the cold steel of the barge deck which is then quickly transferred to your feet.  Once again use layers, starting with a thin cotton sock and then going to thicker wool socks.  If your boots tend to leak, you can add plastic bags over your socks and then into your boots.  Change out your socks when they become damp from perspiration.

Extreme Cold Precautions

Frostbite is an injury to the body caused by freezing. It most often affects exposed parts of the body like the nose, ears, cheeks, chin, fingers or toes. 

If you have to be outside the boat for any length of time in extreme freezing conditions, make sure you frequently check yourself  for these signs:

• white or grayish-yellow patches of skin, skin that feels unusually firm or waxy, or numbness. A person is often unaware of frostbite until someone else points it out because the frozen tissues are numb.  

Warm up frozen/chilled skin by pressing against normal temperature skin (put frozen fingers in arm pits). DO NOT massage frozen/chilled skin; DO NOT rub with snow; and DO NOT place hot items against the cold skin as this could cause more damage. Seek medical attention if skin does not quickly return to normal color and sensation.

Wind Chill

Wind chill (often popularly called the wind chill factor) is the felt air temperature on exposed skin due to wind. The wind chill temperature is always lower than the air temperature, and the windchill is undefined at the higher temps (above 50 °F).  Consult the wind chill chart to determine your potential exposure to the cold. 

Towboat -  Deck Preparations

• Drain on deck fire main and fresh water pipe lines, valves, etc. that are outside of the accommodations and engine room.
• If snow is expected, have shovels and de-icier ready to keep decks ice/snow free.  Have you ordered enough de-icier?
• Drop  mooring/head lines into the forward hold with the ends hung inside the entrance.  Frozen lines are difficult to handle.  Keep them dry and ready to use.
• Be prepared to secure air to the whistle during operations.  Ice crystals can form in the air whistle's actuation valve and prevent it from closing.

Towboat - Machinery, Engine Room Preparations

• Keep engine room doors closed and secured.
• Adjust the number of ventilating fans operating in the engine room.  Secure during all fans extreme low temperature conditions.
• When moored, during extreme cold, start up and idle main engines on a regular schedule to keep engine oil warm.  Use your judgement on how often to run.
• When moored, during extreme cold, start up and swing the rudders on a regular basis to circulate hydraulic fluid and to keep ice from forming around the rudders. 
• Check antifreeze levels in your main and generator engines for the proper concentration.
• Keep air reservoirs well drained of condensation to prevent ice crystal build up inside deck air lines. 

Barge  - Deck Preperations

• Keep working lines dry and out of weather when not in use.
• Clear deck of snow/ice.  Spread de-icier as needed.
• Drain water from barge fuel tank before freezing conditions begin.
• Make sure antifreeze levels are correct in pump/auxilary engines.

Crew Protection

• Crew should be well equipped with proper cold weather clothing.
• Crew work should be planned such that they are less exposed to cold weather and allowed to warm up on a regular basis.
• Heating in accommodation should be checked for satisfactory working.  Are space heaters operational?
• All personnel shall be instructed in hazards of working in freezing conditions.

Nav Zone: Mississippi Low Water 

Shoaling has been an ongoing problem for the US Army Corps of Engineers during the past few months. The extremely high water in May pulled up a lot of sand and sediment. When the waters started receding, the sediments were depositing along the river, creating greater shoaling than normal. Now the river is low, 10 feet in Baton Rouge, and expected to fall lower.

Last week the USCG New Orleans Sector issued a low water safety advisory from LMR MM 167 to MM 303. The advisory recommends that all vessels operating in this area should stay within the "charted navigational channel to the greatest extent possible". Advisory was also issued for increased possibility of shoaling in the vicinity of 81 Mile Point. Mariners were also reminded to check in with VTS New Orleans at the appropriate check-in's.

US Coast Guard Navigation General Questions

A current perpendicular to a vessel's track has the greatest effect on the vessel's course made good _________.

A: at high vessel speeds
B: at low vessel speeds
C: in shallow water
D: in deep water

In shallow water, waves that are too steep to be stable, causing the crests to move forward faster than the rest of the wave, are called _____________.

A: rollers
B: breakers
C: white caps
D: surfers

Clearance gauges at bridges indicate ____________.

A: the height of the tide
B: depth of water under the bridge
C: charted vertical clearance at mean low water
D: distance from the water to low steel of the bridge

On the Mississippi River, gage zero is the gage reading measured from the ____________.

A: National Geodetic Vertical Datum
B: low water reference plane
C: the lowest recorded river depth
D: the highest recorded river depth

You are ascending a river and exchanging navigational information via radiotelephone with a descending vessel. If the descending vessel advises you to "watch for the set" above point X, what would you expect to encounter above point X?

A: An increase in current velocity
B: Slack water
C: Shallow water
D: A sideways movement of your vessel

Stern Shots 

Alfred gets some valves for the barge.

Carlan getting set up to do some needle gun work in the forward hold.

Captain Bobby Espinosa fixes lunch for the crew.

Simulator Class 10/17/2011 From Left: Mike De Cesare (SCI), Ricky Mitchell, James LaFleur, Bub Mereditch, Gary Smith, Bill Howes, Carey Hester, Benjamin Elliott, Matt Hyner (SCI), Alton Rivero, Stephen Polk (SCI), Gordie Keenan.

Nautical Trivia

The Seamen's Church Institute