Deadliest Catch! Improving Safety?

Interesting idea... reduce ice build up? Could they install small heating elements in the rails and under the floor boards of the ship? It doesn't take much to keep ice off, they would only need to keep the temp of the rails above -14F to avoid salt water freezing.

Second idea, place small tubes in or on the rails and pump warm or hot water through them... same idea as above, but using water instead of electric.

Rogue wave detector? They have one... the captain shouts "WATCH OUT, WATCH OUT" (somewhat effective, but cheap.)

I thougt of the same idea with reducing ice buildup.

They should also install retractable laynards for when the guys have to climb on the pots. That way should they fall overboad, all the have to do is reel him back in. There is some fall protection available that detects the speed at which the man is moving, should he move too fast the laynard locks up. This helps to keep them out of the water in the first place.

...what about just wearing safety harnesses, wearing better equipped lifejackets and drinking more vodka?

Does the vodka improve safety?

Yes, it will keep them from feeling the pain as they are dragged and pounded into the side of a heaving ship by the safety harness and retractable lanyard.

Seriously, I understand what's implied about the lanyards. Like a seatbelt, it would sense the speed and probably lock before the person went over the rail. The environment would be hard on that mechanism though.

I've always been under the impression that much of the safety issues revolved around the pots and the way they're handled.

The pot deployment system where a person has to stand next to the rail while a rope fastened to a sinking pot uncoils near his feet seems absurd.

The retrieval system seems equally wrong. For one, the hydraulic clamping system is apparently prone to not capture the pot -either through mishap or operator error. There's no indicator to alert the crew that this has happened until the pot falls over on them.

And some of those boats have a crazy system where they dump the crab out onto a heavy free-moving table (!) and they then push the table over to the hold. How many times have we seen that heavy table sliding around in rough seas?

As for the rails themselves...why so low? The only place they might need to be low is the spot where the pots are deployed / retrieved. Why can't the rails be high enough to better deter someone getting swept overboard?

If you notice the Incentive has a mechanical table that moves to the other side of the boat for separating crab.

Farm raise them.

As safety being the top issue, Sig brings The Northwestern back to port, with its hold empty of crab.........and the film crew searches for new show material..........there you have your next show.

The Perils of Film Crews

1) Reducing ice buildup?

WTF; how would you chill the Vodka?

2) Possibly adding detection systems to warn against rogue waves?

Rogue waves are just that, rogues. Chaos theory may be able to predict the likelihood, but not the event.

I love it when lubbers make suggestions as to what to do on the high seas. Get some salt in your rope burns first.

Most of the problems seem to arise when the factory ship is inaccessible. A dead catch is less than chum.