The PFD Work Group grew from the IFISH 5 session entitled “Changing Commercial Fishing Personal Flotation Use Behavior: What can we learn from efforts to address the most important safety technology adoption challenge of our time?” Here you can find meeting recordings and other materials related to the group. Anyone interested in learning more about this international group of commercial fishing safety researchers should contact rebecca.weil@bassett.org. Virtual meetings take place quarterly.

PFD Work Group March 2023 Meeting

Updates from Jennifer Lincoln, Associate Director of NIOSH; Manoverboard (MOB) Awareness Events with Simon Potten, Head of Safety, Training and Services at the Sea Fish Industry Authority (Seafish), and Frankie Horne, Fishing Safety Manager at the Royal National Lifeboats Institution (RNLI). You can view the meeting agenda here and view the recording of the meeting below.

PFD Work Group December 2022 Meeting

Darren Guard with Guard Safety in New Zealand presented on PFDs in the New Zealand Context including PFD use, findings from a recent survey “Recreational Boating Fatal Accidents: 2015-2020/2021” as well as a recent 5-person drowning event with the involvement of auto inflate PFD’s onboard. In 2015 Darren started his own business – Guard Safety. As Managing Director, he leads the company to promote and encourage health, safety, and wellbeing in the wider maritime industry and are leaders in the MarineSAFE project, providing free online health, safety and wellbeing resources to the fishing sector, and are also managing and delivering the Seafood Sector Support Network Trust, FirstMate. You can view the meeting agenda here and view the recording of the meeting below.

PFD Work Group September 2022 Meeting

Dr. Charles Freeman shared findings from his team’s research with commercial shrimpers in the Gulf of Mexico in which they conducted one-on-one user needs assessments and PFD prototype development. Through a human-centered design approach, his team looked at the major issues (comfort, movement, respiration, and cultural) reported by the shrimpers for the “WHY” behind the extremely low-rate of PFD usage while on deck and on the water.

You can view the agenda here and view the meeting recording below.

PFD Work Group June 2022 Meeting

Health communication specialist Ted Teske presented on the Fishing Safety Success Story video series he developed for the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). These short videos focus on a single incident in the commercial fishing industry where injury was avoided through adoption or application of a NIOSH-recommended safety practice. To view the “Fishing Safety Success Story” video series, go to the CDC YouTube page.

View the meeting agenda here and view the meeting recording below.

PFD Work Group February 2022 Meeting

Allen Stevens, senior engineer for the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI), presented on a live testing program of inflatable PFDs. Stevens sits on the British Standards Committee for Lifejackets and has been involved in lifejacket and safety projects with the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) of the United Kingdom (UK). More recently, Stevens has been involved in a mass testing project looking at the correct packing and inflation of lifejackets in the UK and Ireland. View the meeting agenda here. Held March 3, 2022, the meeting was not recorded.

PFD Work Group December 2021 Meeting

Fish Safe NS retrofitted a Ford F150 into a Mobile Training Unit (MTU) to provide wharf-side safety demonstrations, safety equipment and other safety resources to Nova Scotia fishermen. Matthew Duffy, executive director of this membership-funded, non-profit safety association based in Halifax, NS, presents on how the mobile unit has been able to help the Nova Scotia fishermen with PFD-related questions, maintenance, education and now distribution. You an view the agenda and view a recording of the meeting. You an view the agenda and view a recording of the meeting. View the agenda here and watch the recording of the meeting below.

PFD Work Group September 2021 Meeting

Efforts to promote the wearing of PFDs among fishermen within the largest wild sockeye salmon fishery in the world was the focus of a panel-led discussion. Comprised by representatives from Bristol Bay Reserve–a member-owned marine insurance pool–and fishery participants, the panel described the fishery, the hazards within the fishery and discuss the role of vessel insurance as a way to promote PFD use across a wide array of vessel operators and crew. You can view the agenda and watch the recording of the Sept. 8, 2021 meeting below.

PFD Work Group June 2021 Meeting

On June 2, 2021, the PFD Work Group met to discuss FishSafe’s efforts to promote PFDs among British Columbia commercial fishing industry. You can view the agenda and watch the recording of the meeting below.

PFD Work Group March 2021 Meeting

On March 3, 2021, the PFD Work Group met to discuss recent research on personal locator devices. You can view the agenda and watch the recording of the meeting below.

PFD Work Group December 2020 Meeting

The group met on December 2, 2020 and discussed RNLI’s Fishermen’s Water Experience event. Here is a link to the presentation slides.