What do you do with the body?

[UNCIVILIZED]

The block & tackle thing needs serious thinking through: By, & For Everyone. Since even with the best ball bearing blocks, a 6:1 tackle yields at best 5:1 purchase. And if you have an MOB that weighs 220lb (100kg) dry, he'll be quite a bit more when dressed in foulies, boots, & a couple of soaked layers of fleece & wool.

Round numbers, let's call it 300lbs, & at 5:1 (ideally), that's 60lbs. Which, you have to hoist the MOB a minimum of 5' vertically, from the WL to cabin top, or over the lifelines. And that means pulling in 30' of line on the block & tackle, minimum. When you're probably already exhausted, from trying to get the MOB back onboard via other methods. And even for a relatively fit guy, pulling 60lb, hand over hand for 60' is quite an effort.
Read quite a number of men can't do it, even young guys...

So you'll really need to lead the tail end of the line from the block & tackle through a snatch block, & then to a self-tailing winch. This with the upper block in the tackle suspended from a halyard.

IE; the above's why it's often suggested that you have a dedicated, purpose built lifting setup next to your Lifesling.
Also note that if you can't reasonably get your MOB fully back onboard. Getting them into the dinghy, with it tethered alongside, is definitely a step up. And it's a lot warmer than the ocean. Plus one can administer aid to them if they're in the dink. Though of course it, & you, must be well tethered too. Otherwise....



Then again, if you're a Fargo fan, & own a wood chipper...

[jdazey]

Originally Posted by Paul L

See the International Medical Guide for Ships published by WHO and available for free download. In the third edition it is Chapter 27 Death at Sea.

It's actually Chapter 13, Page 271.

http://sbs-on-web.com/downloads/Medi...lGuide_ENG.pdf

Cheers,
Joe

[appick]

Having come across a corpse on Lake Michigan 8nm northwest of Navy Pier last June, I can say without a doubt if someone dies on my boat farther than a few days from land your butt is getting wet with a burial at sea. There is no way a human could stand the smell of a corpse in an enclosed space after a few days. Just circling the body waiting for the Chicago PD to get there was bad enough. I can't say for certain what size the person was to start with but I would seriously doubt being able to get the hoisted through a hatch if you wait for the bloating to start.

It was pretty grotesque almost out of a horror zombie movie level of bloating. I've hunted and helped a neighbor remove a dead deer that had been there a while, this however was a whole other level. I wasnt that particularly mentally disturbed by our finding the body, you hear of people drowning and being pulled out in rip currents all the time on the Great Lakes. I'm just trying to give a realistic first hand account of a dead and decomposing corpse.

[Island Time O25]

Originally Posted by UNCIVILIZED

The block & tackle thing needs serious thinking through:

Why not use boat's electric windlass?

[fishondryland]

Dead Body Olympics | MythBusters | Discovery

[Paul L]

Originally Posted by jdazey

It's actually Chapter 13, Page 271.

http://sbs-on-web.com/downloads/Medi...lGuide_ENG.pdf

Cheers,
Joe

You're linking to the 2nd edition. 3rd edition is much larger and more complete.

[kmacdonald]

Cut into pieces and dispose of overboard. And I mean all the pieces, no saving trophies or souvenirs.

[IslandHopper]

Originally Posted by jdazey

It's actually Chapter 13, Page 271.

http://sbs-on-web.com/downloads/Medi...lGuide_ENG.pdf

Cheers,
Joe

The one you uploaded is the 2nd Edition, the 3rd edition is as Paul L states, Chapter 27 (Pg 333), unfortunately at 2.15mb it's to big for me to post here but here is the link.....

http://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/1...682313_eng.pdf

Cheers


Edit: I see Paul L beat me to it while I was dicking around trying to make the PDF smaller...

[jdazey]

OK, I made a mistake, and I'll take my punishment. Just make sure you:

straighten the legs and arms;
interlock the fingers over the thighs;
brush the hair clear of the forehead
and wash my face before you pitch me over the side.

Humbly,

[JPA Cate]

I know it's hard for people not to joke about this issue, it's hard to confront it with a cool head. We all want to think in terms of beautiful sunsets and pleasant libations, but there is a potential dark side, and imo, women should be aware of it. Fortunately this incident happened in Pittwater, so in an area where help was available. The vessel was French, and so were the people. She was not a wife. He had a heart attack, ambulance came, he died, and the relatives notified. Since they were not married, she had no legal claim to the boat, and they evicted her. There she was, no beloved, no home. It was horrible to see. That's why you need to have your will aboard.

If you have a 5 or 6 part tackle that you use to get yourself up the mast, this will be the best thing your wife or girlfriend can use to lift you. The "up" end of the tackle needs to be quite a bit higher (lift it with a halyard), so that it will make the body go up high enough for you to get to it. The long tail can be led aft to a genoa sheet winch.

There is no requirement for a body bag, a large genoa sail bag will accommodate a corpse, so store them on the boat; they can also be used to transport the sails for repairs. A few dive weights or a short length of chain will suffice to sink it. Although, a military body bag just might keep the odors down pretty well--thanks for the reminder, appick, I don't think most people can imagine it, and it's one reason I think in terms of earlier burial at sea.

Ann

[StuM]

Originally Posted by Sawbonz

Is there really a murder charge concern in the middle of the ocean? I mean, there's no jurisdiction a week from land I think.

A frequent misconception. You still come under the jurisdiction of your State of Registry.

[Sawbonz]

Originally Posted by kmacdonald

Cut into pieces and dispose of overboard. And I mean all the pieces, no saving trophies or souvenirs.

Actually, this is almost what I expected! Lol

[zeehag]

notify authorities. they will prolly escort you to closest port of entry where you get to fillout paper and have investigation.
this happened with a chartered motor yacht name of quiet heart a few yrs on back. they were in san diego cop dock a while during investigation.
personally, viking funeral saves a lotta time.......

[StuM]

Originally Posted by jdazey

It's actually Chapter 13, Page 271.

http://sbs-on-web.com/downloads/Medi...lGuide_ENG.pdf

Cheers,
Joe

That's the 2nd Edition. It's Chapter 27, Pages 333-334 in the 3rd Edition.

3rd Edition is available here:
http://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/1...682313_eng.pdf

[Pelagic]

I think mid ocean I would have little choice but to conduct a burial at Sea, once I had informed the deceased's family of the death.

Video documentation of the deceased, trying to explain the cause of death, if from a trauma or symptoms prior to death.

Video body preparation, respectful burial ceremony, GPS position and Date/UTC, to confirm burial location.

This will help the deceased's family to understand your decision to maintain a safe and healthy environment on board for your own survival and to provide first contact authorities with documentation of an event that happened 2 weeks ago, mid ocean.

One rider to that advice, is if you are in a busy sea lane mid ocean, try and contact a commercial ship and ask if they are willing to refrigerate and transport the body to their first port of call.

Odds are, Captain will refuse because of Quarantine delays, but at least you tried!