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How to Use a Distress Beacon

Having a distress beacon on your boat can seem like overkill, especially if you only sail in familiar waters or hike local trails, but it can make the difference between life and a slow death. You can purchase or rent distress beacons, which come in two main varieties. Electronic Position Indicating Radio Beacons must be registered to a boat and remain wall-mounted on the vessel at all times. Personal Locator Beacons are registered to you and can travel from one boat to another or accompany you on land.

Instructions

On Water
- 1
  Make sure you have the right beacon before emergency strikes: As of February 2009, satellites stopped picking up transmissions from 121.5 and 243 MHz beacons. They only pick up transmissions from 406 MHz beacons.
- 2
  Read over the instruction manual on your distress beacon so you know how to operate it when the time comes. Different models can operate in different ways. Keep the instruction manual in a safe place on your vessel so you can refer back to it in an emergency.
- 3
  Float an Electronic Position Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB) on the water for best transmission. If you have a Personal Locator Beacon (PLB), hold it clear of the water since it cannot transmit clearly while floating on water. If you are on land, make sure your PLB can see the sky and that no trees obstruct its view, for improved aircraft transmission.
- 4
  Activate your distress beacon using the "ON" switch.
- 5
  Be assured that the signal is being transmitted to rescue authorities. If your distress beacon is equipped with GPS, it will transmit your exact location for faster rescue. Otherwise, rescue teams need to calculate your location, which can add hours to your rescue time.
- 6
  Remain calm and wait for help to arrive.
On Land
- 7
  Read over the instructions on your PLB before you take it out. Store the manual with the PLB so you can activate it safely in an emergency.
- 8
  Turn the PLB on using the "ON" switch. Once you activate the PLB, it sends a distress signal to authorities.
- 9
  Wait for help to arrive. If your PLB has GPS, authorities can learn your location within five minutes; if your PLB does not, it can take 45 minutes to determine your location.
- 10
  Use audio or visual help signals to draw your rescue team to you, since they may not be able to see you if you're in a thick forest. Try a signal mirror, strobe light or whistle.

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