b'SAFETYAWARDSHeroes In Our Midst; Nominate Your Crew for Gedney Passenger Vessel Safety Award by November 30In June 2019, three teenagers went for a swim in thethe small boy fell trying to board a Fire Island Ferry in Bay James River in Virginia. Winds were about 15 knots andShore, NY and jumped in to retrieve the child. On the West seas were two to three feet with a strong current. The teensCoast, the fast reaction of the crew of American Queen intended to swim to a structure 1,500 feet fromSteamboat Company-owned American Empress shore, but conditions fatigued them and theyto an onboard fi re resulted in no injuries, fatali-were soon in trouble. One started to go underties or serious vessel damage. And the little girl water. trapped in the overturned boat near Ellis Island Fourth of July 2018. A family was excited towas saved when an on-duty dock attendant of spend Independence Day on Fire Island in NewStatue Cruises, operated by Hornblower, leapt York, when a four-year-old boy plunged intooff a 10-foot seawall into rough waters and Long Islands Great South Bay while attemptingCapt. Beth Gedney swam 75 yards to rescue her. to board a ferry.All of these heroes are past recipients of the A year earlier, a fi re broke out on a small, overnightCaptain Elizabeth Gedney Passenger Vessel Safety Award, cruise vessel in Oregon. The vessel had 175 passengerswhich is presented annually by the PVA Safety and aboard when the fi re started.Security Committee and the Passenger Vessel Foundation And, in the summer of 2016, a recreational boatfor the life-saving actions of passenger vessel operators. capsized near Ellis Island in New York, with a fi ve-year- They were chosen by their peers on the Committee old girl trapped underneath the overturned vessel.for their herculean efforts that resulted in a successful What do all these events have in common? All theoutcome. victimsin what could have been tragic disasterswereBeth Gedney was a staunch supporter of safety in the successfully rescued by trained mariners who quicklypassenger vessel industry, fi rst as an operator, then as a responded and saved lives. All are PVA members whomember of the PVA staff who spearheaded safety initia-have extensive training and know exactly what to do intives, including industry-wide training. She passed away an emergency. in 2013, but her legacy lives on through the safety award In the case of the teens, the captain and crew of thethat bears her name. nPocahontas, a ferry operated by the state-run Jamestown-Scotland Ferry in Surry, VA, quickly assisted theDo you know a hero? Nominate them now by completing swimmers and ensured they received medical attention.the application at http://www.pvfoundation.com/awards/On Long Island, a seasoned captain didnt hesitant whencaptain-elizabeth-gedney-passenger-vessel-safety-award/SAFETY MATTERS, CONTINUED FROM PAGE 36at MSC. Almost 20 years later, OCMIs are defaulting to MSC for nearly allSafety is not a compromise. Add New PPE!plan review. This has advantages Dedicated Engineering and Customer Service supportand disadvantages but is yet anotherRegional sales people throughout the US and coastal areasindicator that expertise at seniorNew products to meet any vessel configurationSector command levels is not whatAll seats meet requirements of IMO HSC Codeit used to be. Industry cannot always count on a MSC alum going to the fi eld and working plan review locally.At the end of the allotted time, the consensus of the group was that electrical work demand is not going to slow down.Industry is hiring electrical engineers just like MSC is staffing the Electrical Branch.TheCatalina GenoaFlipSeat Valencia NewSocialDistanceSeat AluminumSeat SeatBandmore industry day events the Coast Guard can do regarding plan review,SUPPLYINGMAJORCITIES,BUILDERSANDOPERATORSACROSSNORTHAMERICAthe better as far as our members areWWW.FREEDMANSEATING.COM | (800) 443-4540concerned. nSEPTEMBER 2020FOGHORN 37'