Flaming Flares

[Gwylan]

Out of date, I just found out when I dragged the tub from the depths of the locker. Handy eh?

Anyway, what to do

buy a new set and grapple with disposing of the expired ones?
dispose of them and take my chances?
just buy some orange smoke and a big torch?
Whatever?

suggestions and collective wisdom please

 

[Rigger Mortice]

I don't think I'll ever buy new flares again. With all the gizmos we have now I'm not sure that they are really needed.
I'll keep the old ones until they seem to be ridiculously old then quietly set them off on November 5th.

 

[Gwylan]

What gizmo would you use?

 

[JumbleDuck]

Out of date, I just found out when I dragged the tub from the depths of the locker. Handy eh?

Anyway, what to do

Keep them for a bit longer. What would you rather have when nothing else has brought help ... a bundle of flares with a 90% chance of working or the nice warm feeling that all the flares you had on board were in date?

I keep an in-date set and the out-of-date set which the in-date set replaced.

 

[blackbeard]

Well, if you go to France you will need 3 in-date pinpoint reds. I would have a smoke as well.

Old flares: I intend a November 5 solution for my pinpoint reds (carefully), but disposing of a smoke in this way would give the downwind neighbourhood a coating of orange powder which might win me few friends.

Parachute flares are just dangerous and can be used instead of incendiary bombs. Top of the list for "proper"disposal, chandlers might take them in when you buy new flares, or might dispose of them for a small-ish fee, or you could take advantage of a flare amnesty. I don't intend (shock, horror) ever buying the things again, there are FAR better ways of summoning assistance when out of sight of land/shipping. They have been known to kill people, does anyone know if they have actually saved lives recently?

if you have flares which seem to be in poor condition it could be a job for bomb disposal

 

[Rigger Mortice]

What gizmo would you use?

Epirb, radio, mobile (yes, I know!), spotlight, signalling mirror? Just off the top of my head. I'm sure there's more.

My real point is that flares are becoming increasingly redundant. In years gone by we could only give a DR position.....if we had a radio. Nowadays we can just hit a button and an accurate position is sent out (if we have a DSC set).

 

[rbmatthews]

Epirb, radio, mobile (yes, I know!), spotlight, signalling mirror? Just off the top of my head. I'm sure there's more.

There's also the Odeo flare "The modern alternative to the traditional red hand-held flare" (http://www.odeoflare.co.uk/). They have mixed reviews, haven't tried them myself, so can't vouch for them, but they seem like a good idea.

 

[nigelmercier]

My real point is that flares are becoming increasingly redundant...

Certainly rocket flares are an anachronism, and hand-held flares are almost at the point of replacement, if not already. What I don't understand is why they were not replaced years ago by xenon strobes, as used in camera flash modules.

 

[JumbleDuck]

My real point is that flares are becoming increasingly redundant. In years gone by we could only give a DR position.....if we had a radio. Nowadays we can just hit a button and an accurate position is sent out (if we have a DSC set).

And if you have an aerial. Which, after a dismasting, you may not.

 

[Tranona]

You may well get into trouble disposing of old flares by letting them off. There are designated disposal locations around the coast - the list is on the RYA site or call the coastguard. There is also a scheme running in a number of S coast marinas where old flares are collected.

There is no compulsion to carry any flares on a private British boat under 13.7m and many people choose to use alternative methods of summoning help. The situation is less clear if you take your boat abroad. In theory British rules apply even though in many country flares are compulsory for local boats. There is a summary of the issues surrounding flares and guidance about what you should do on the RYA site.

 

[Anders_P42]

RYA flare amnesty going on, info here.

http://www.rya.org.uk/newsevents/news/Pages/FlareamnestyDisposeofyouroutofdateflares.aspx

Anders

 

[Anders_P42]

Doube post

 

[Bru]

Well I've just bought an Odeo laser flare and a PLB and that's the end of pyrotechnics afaic

 

[nigelmercier]

RYA flare amnesty going on, info here...

Hampshire Constabulary Marine Unit in conjunction with Ramora UK, one of the UK’s leading bomb disposal companies and the below marinas are offering "a distress flare amnesty" for private boat owners on select dates...

If anything says flares should be banned, this is it!

 

[KellysEye]

>They have been known to kill people

Please could you let us know when and where people have been killed by flares?

The point of flares is to make a boat easy to see, whether the boat is amongst 100's of boats in the Solent or out in the ocean. Nothing else can do that. Bear in mind that an out of date parachute flare exploded in a cruiser's hand in Lagos, Portugal, I saw it happen. Wear gloves if firing any flare. Also I fired a Pains Wessex large orange smoke that was in date doing a sky diving demo, it didn't work.

 

[Rigger Mortice]

>They have been known to kill people

Please could you let us know when and where people have been killed by flares?

The point of flares is to make a boat easy to see, whether the boat is amongst 100's of boats in the Solent or out in the ocean. Nothing else can do that. Bear in mind that an out of date parachute flare exploded in a cruiser's hand in Lagos, Portugal, I saw it happen. Wear gloves if firing any flare. Also I fired a Pains Wessex large orange smoke that was in date doing a sky diving demo, it didn't work.

I think you are highlighting that flares are unreliable.
I would largely agree that nothing else will make you visible but even that is not completely true (a spot light, a signalling mirror, half dropping your sails, can all help to make you visible). However it is not about just making yourself visible, you can use other things to guide a rescue chopper or lifeboat to you.

 

[MoodySabre]

No more flares for me. Bought a PLB.

 

[Giblets]

Please could you let us know when and where people have been killed by flares?

Was there not someone killed by a parachute flare being let off during Cowes fireworks a few years ago?

 

[KellysEye]

>Was there not someone killed by a parachute flare being let off during Cowes fireworks a few years ago?

From a previous thread: Anyone remember Cowes week fireworks when everyone used to let off their out of date flares? That was until some idiot let off a rocket flare horizontally some years ago. Someone was hit in the chest and killed. It doesn't say whether the person who did that was charged with murder, on the other hand it could have caused a heart attack. The reason I say that is a flare is quite light in weight so it's difficult to see how it could kill someone.

I still stand by the fact that flares are the best and fastest way to get attention. If others want to use another method good luck. On the unreliable front our skydiving display team used well over two hundred Pains Wessex orange smokes and only one failed. Pointing it out is only an argument to carry more than one flare, not implying that they are unreliable often.

 

[tigr]

This person had a very close call, they did not think he would survive.
http://www.bucksfreepress.co.uk/news/2425606.faulty_flare_victim_thanks_hospital/