Fishers Thankful for Safety at Sea Training Programme

Fisherfolk who participated in the National Fisheries Authority’s (NFA) inaugural safety at sea training programme have high praises for the initiative, noting that it will aid in significantly improving their endeavours

Twenty-one-year-old Daniel Singh of the Hunts Bay fishing village in Kingston expressed his appreciation for the knowledge he received and said he would “highly recommend” the training to other fishers.

“I’ve learnt new ways of doing things and how to take precautions when there’s danger, as well as how to use equipment such as safety tools and gadgets,” he told JIS News, following the programme’s graduation ceremony at the Caribbean Maritime University (CMU) on September 29.

Mr. Singh, who was the youngest participant, hails from a family of fishers, and has been fishing for many years.

He said one standout lesson from the training is the fact that “just like how there are road codes, there is a code for the sea as well [to guide] how seacrafts should operate when approaching others, and how to communicate without voice.”

Veteran fisher, Errol Evans, of the Rae Town fishing village, also in Kingston, who has been in the profession for over 50 years, said the training will not only make him a better fisherman but will allow him to offer more wisdom to his younger counterparts.

“I’ve been in very difficult [situations] at sea, and this training can [equip] me to save some of the younger folks from experiencing the difficulties I have been through,” he explained.

Among the key takeaways from the programme for Mr. Evans were discussions on: ‘how to keep your garbage into your boat and bring it back to land’; ‘how to store your fuel at sea’; ‘how to encounter with other things when you go to sea’, and ‘how to be prepared [with essentials such as] water, food and your tools’.

Thirty-year-old Desroy Finnley, also of the Rae Town fishing village, was similarly gratified when he spoke with JIS News.

“The training [was] very perfect. It’s a good move for us as fishers because, in everything that we do, safety comes first. It is important that when we go out in the waters, we can return to our families that we have left at shore,” said the father of three.

He added that “some of the things I used to do at sea, I [won’t] do them anymore because of what I have learned at this training.”

For the Old Harbour Bay fishing village’s Keisha Davis, who has been a fisher for over 10 years, the training was “a dream come true”.

“I hope to retain what I have learned and use it to help train some of the guys in [the village], because it’s really important,” she said, pointing out that the detailed training manual which the fishers received during the programme, can be shared with others.

Of the lessons imparted during the training, Ms. Davis said she was most enlightened by the fire safety techniques.

She indicated that in the event of a fire on her small vessel, where this may be caused by a lit kerosene lamp for example, she learned how to calmly place wet material, such as cloth or crocus (burlap) bag, over the fire instead of throwing the lamp overboard and potentially causing the flame to spread.

“I really just have to thank God because, with the help of the coast guard and the marine police, this training can really save lives,” Ms. Davis said.

The Safety at Sea Training Programme stems from a memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed earlier this year between the NFA and CMU, with the support of the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, to train local fishers in navigation and seamanship.

The MOU was funded by the Production Incentive Programme and was established for a five-year period, with a minimum of 35 fishers targetted for training annually.

This year, fishers were trained in Montego Bay and Black River before the exercise culminated in Kingston at the CMU’s Palisadoes Road campus.