New methods for disposing of old flares

LittleSister

LittleSister

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In the light of the recent news (see below)

METHOD 1. Get all in your sailing club to let off their old flares at the club at the same time. When the coastguard or police arrive, tells them it was them pesky local scallywags.

If you can't keep a straight face for that, or would rather not tell a lie, then
METHOD 2 may suit - Tell said scallywags where the flares are and then make yourself scarce. (P.S. with Method 2 maybe make sure your insurance is in order first.)

"Flares stolen in Sussex and Gwynedd
Police are hunting vandals who stole and set off emergency flares in Littlehampton. The flares were taken last week from six boats on hard standings at Arun Yacht Club, and reports of their being set off resulted in Coastguards being called out and Littlehampton lifeboat crew put on standby.

The incident happened just a few days after thieves broke in to nine boats in Dickies Boatyard in Bangor and removed a variety of flares and an Ikaros parachute rocket. Police have warned anyone coming across these flares to be extremely careful, and for anyone with information on either theft to contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.

Motor Boats Monthly, 12 January 2009"

Wish I could get someone to steal my old flares!
 
I havent done anything about my old flares and currently have no real need to do so, but thinking about it I might eventually ignore the strict legalities and use common sense instead. After all, the authorities have removed the disposal service they provided (HMCG, plod, the RN etc) without giving an alternative - bit like your local authority simply refusing to empty bins and banned you from getting rid of your rubbish.

The obvious reason for the law is to avoid false alerts, something no one would argue with. But I dont see how letting off red and white hand flares well inland on bonfire night when there are lots of other pyrotechnics around could ever trigger an alert. The parachute flares are a different issue - not worked out what to do there.

Feel no compunction about the legalities - there's a world of difference between laws about things like theft, muder on the one hand and minor regs like this one on the other. Annd before I get a flood of pious replies, the large majority of us will break some traffic law every day but we will do so safely and using judgement. I would put safe disposal of hand flares under the same sort of heading.

Now that should start people off - but in real life what is the alternative?
 
One possibility is that they are being stolen by football supporters. Do they let of flares in the UK footie matches like they do in Italy etc?
 
[ QUOTE ]
One possibility is that they are being stolen by football supporters. Do they let of flares in the UK footie matches like they do in Italy etc?

[/ QUOTE ] I know, in this country, a fan was killed by a parachute rocket fired from one stand to the other.
 
I was at a Saints vs Man U.Match at St Mary's about three years ago and some plonker lit a red handheld flare, waved it about for a few minutes then (probably) decided it was getting too hot and threw it on to the pitch, narrowly missing the goalie, where it burned for several minutes.

He was a fair way up in the stand and it's lucky that he managed to get it over the heads of those sitting beneath him - I shudder to think what would have happened if it had landed on someone but I guess they would have been badly hurt.

He was a Man U. supporter (naturally /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif) and they declared their intention of identifying him and banning him from Old Trafford for life. Don't know if they succeeded, but it bought home to me just how dangerous it is to muck about with flares.
 
There are two ways of getting killed or injured by a flare:

Misuse of a correctly-functioning flare, e.g. firing a parachute flare at someone or dropping/throwing a hand-held

Malfunctioning flares as in the case of the white Pains Wessex hand-held which exploded causing horrendous injuries (some forumites know the victim). The flare that malfunctioned was in-date which is extremely rare but the probability increases with age.

It used to be common practice to let off old flares for practice but it is now considered unwise.
 
I think the people who make them and make money out of them should have some responsibility for collection and disposal. They get them to the chandlers somehow so maybe they can do pick ups as well. Could be an added business opportunity for them.
 
It used to be the practice of some ships to bag up and weigh down and sink them at sea. That was the ones not used for demo's.

It's worth noting that flares burn in and out of water - they supply their own oxygen for the burn from the blend inside. It is therefore not impossible to render a flare safe by igniting and firing INTO the water - that's parachute or hand.

Before the Greens amongst you lot shout me down - I am not proposing that you then do this in Solent, local Marina etc. as you are probably illegally dumping even if at deep sea. But it is a safer way than many other ideas I've heard from people. Firing to the water, (obviously not dead vertical ! but at angle away from everyone etc.) also gets out of creating a false alarm. The flare is then dead and no hazard.

Just a thought.
 
The last lot I got rid of (in December), I just took the the Coasties at Lee on Solent. They asked if they could keep the box as there were quite a lot.

The 1986 expiry ones didn't cause a raised eyebrow - "We've had 'em plenty older than that, Sir. At least yours are in good condition."
 
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