Hypothermia in the Gulf of Mexico

Because most consider the Gulf of Mexico to be warm waters, it is that ideology that makes it so dangerous. Yes, the water is much warmer than the northern waters, but the human body reacts the same way to water at 58 to 60 degrees as it does to water at 45 degrees. You will first encounter a cold water shock, causing you to start gasping while somehow yelling some expletives between gasps, you will get up in an attempt to stay warm, you will shake uncontrollably, your fingers and feet will begin to lose mobility, and without waterline, you will not be able to keep your head above the waterline.

Cold water immersion can be survived if proper measures are taken. If my article “The Seven Steps to Survival” you will learn that recognition is the first step. If you don’t realize that abandonment is possible, as some do, and if you don’t put the flotation (life jackets and life raft) on your plane, it’s probably one of the many sad statistics that say, “Occupants don’t it had flotation devices. “

While in the United States Coast Guard stationed in Kodiak Alaska, I had the privilege of serving with Dr. Martin Neimeroff (Captain). Dr. Neimeroff was the Coast Guard’s leading expert on cold water immersion. Through his teachings, I learned that hypothermia (lowering of the core temperature of the body) has an adverse effect on the human body, even to small degrees. This human machine was designed to run at a constant 98.6 degrees, and any variation up or down causes a negative effect (hyperthermia / hypothermia).

The human body generates a small amount of heat through chills (stage one hypothermia of 98.6 F to 95.0 degrees). Feeling cold, chills, drowsiness, slurred speech, and disorientation are stage one symptoms (mild hypothermia). Note: A person with “Stage One” hypothermia will appear to be intoxicated.

As you can see, a variation of just 3.6 degrees from your normal body temperature can cause adverse effects that can severely affect your ability to do the things necessary to survive.

Now let’s go one step further. Let’s say your body temperature drops below 95 degrees. You are now entering stage two hypothermia (95-91 degrees). Symptoms include decreased chills, decreased level of consciousness, and slower breathing rate. For the person in water (PIW) with no buoyancy, this is where you are starting to get into some very serious trouble. The chills you experienced in stage one of hypothermia have caused you to expend a lot of energy. Once the chills stop, your body will no longer have the ability to reheat. You will be very exhausted and will not be able to maneuver with the waves and waves to come. He will begin to gasp with a mouth full of water and will not be able to stay above the surface, so he will eventually drown.

Now go down to the next level. Stage three (severe hypothermia) 91-86 degrees. Symptoms include muscle stiffness and loss of consciousness. I hope I don’t have to explain what happens to a PIW without floating when it loses consciousness.

The stages of hypothermia will depend on the time in the water. This will vary from person to person and has a lot to do with body mass. For example, a boy would succumb faster than a man. The thicker the body mass, the longer the survival time.

The probability of dying from hypothermia is minimal for a PIW without flotation. His cause of death would probably read; Drowning from inability to keep head above water. He drowned, but the drowning was likely caused by losing control of his arms and legs or losing consciousness due to immersion in cold water.

Although the EXPECTED SURVIVAL TIME for a person in 75 degrees water is 3 hours to Indefinitely, the wording “Indefinitely” is based on the condition that you are wearing a life jacket and can keep your head out of the water even in case of unconsciousness (as all CG approved life jackets are designed to do).

The water temperature in the eastern Gulf of Mexico today (April) is around 75 degrees. Depending on how long you are in the water and what you are wearing, you could lose consciousness in three hours! From November to March, cooler water temperatures give you even less time to survive. That is why it is so important to get out of the water that it “steals the heat.”

The main areas of heat loss are the head, neck, armpits, sides of the chest, and groin. When you immerse your body in water, you immediately begin to lose heat in these areas through: Convection (the movement of water “colder than you”) and Conduction (the skin touches anything colder than body temperature).

The response of the human body is to protect the central area of ​​the chest and heart. Blood cools too fast (x25 in water), so the human body’s response is to shut off blood flow to the outer extremities, for example; fingers and toes. Soon after, the blood will continue and withdraw from the arms and legs and pool in the central area of ​​the body. In addition, blood flow to the brain will be restricted, leading to unusual behaviors such as muttering incoherent sentences, swimming, and stripping (removing clothes and floating), a common finding among many wet hypothermia victims.

Because blood now pools in the central area of ​​the body, any sudden jolt, such as lifting the survivor into an upright position, jumping out of a helicopter after rescue, or even walking, can cause a sudden rush of this pooled blood. in your legacy. This would make her heart beat even harder to retrieve the blood “now pooled in her legs.” Lack of blood and oxygen to the heart and brain = cardiac arrest. Hypothermic patients will state that they are fine to walk, but they should always be transferred in a horizontal position and held in this manner until medical attention can be administered. The accumulated blood in the central area has to return to the legs and arms. Ideally, this return should occur slowly and under the care of a medical facility.

Conduction by immersion in water happens 25 times faster than air!

By assuming the Heat Loss Reduction (HELP) position, you can protect your body’s vulnerable areas of heat loss (head, neck, armpits, sides, and groin).

Note that this position can only be maintained with the help of a flotation device (US Coast Guard approved life jacket). Without the float, you would have to stretch your legs and kick, exposing your groin area, and swing your arms out to stabilize yourself, exposing your neck, armpits, and sides. By holding the HELP position, you can extend your survival time by hours.

Life rafts, are they necessary in the waters of the Caribbean? I say absolutely!

In a real life setting, the waves will hit you from all sides. You may be excited to see an approaching rain cloud, but you will still be surprised to find that these rain storms really do pack a punch. Of course, a life raft trip through a storm would be exciting too, but at least you won’t be swallowing seawater during your trip.

By lifting your body out of the water, you increase your chances of survival by more than 70 percent! By hopping into a canopied life raft, not only are you emerging from the heat-stealing water, but now you can protect yourself from the sun, wind, and rain, and you have the assurance that all your crew members are together.

If your abandonment occurs at the end of the day, you have a good chance of spending the night. That’s eight to ten hours! A life raft can be your best friend, your life preserver, in this situation. By getting on a life raft, you’ve increased your survival time out of the water, increased the size of your target, and now you should have an excess of signaling equipment that can make it easier for you to be found.

Even on land, the life raft that acts as a tent will provide the same protection and signaling features. Why wouldn’t you take a life raft?

Group position (can only be achieved with float). Place injured people or children in the center. The idea is to “enclose” the water in the center of the group. This “locked up” water will be heated by the combined body heat of each survivor. No, it won’t reach 98.6 degrees, but it will be a lot hotter than the water on your butt. Remember the five main areas of body heat loss. You still need to cross those legs, arms out to the sides, use the inflated vest bladder to block the water and isolate the neck area, and if you are lucky enough to wear a hat at this point, pull it down a little tighter.

The HUDDLE position not only provides shared warmth, but also helps overcome obstacles to survival as a team while significantly increasing the size of your target for seekers. Use the Seven Step Plan for Survival.

Search engines in your area? Turn around and lie back to back while locking your arms. Now kick! This circular splash can be seen from two miles away by aerial search engines and approximately half a mile to one mile away by marine assets.