What to take

Grab bags are vital to survival in your liferaft and should be checked, maintained and adapted for each new passage and crew. Charge or replace batteries, check medicine dates and tailor the contents to the environment. Essential emergency items should be stored in watertight containers that will float: old flare containers are ideal for this job, but also look out for the type of storage containers used by sea kayakers which tend to be different colours.

It is easy to fill a grab bag with personal and supplementary items, making it too bulky or heavy to move so I use a system of hierarchy on longer passages. The primary bag contains emergency essentials, passports and medication, the others have supplementary survival equipment and personal effects.

Crew may also pack their own small dry bags with essentials, but it must be understood by everybody on board which bags to grab first.

In a habit learned from offshore racing I now carry an emergency water container even on deliveries. This is a 10lt container, filled with nine litres of water to allow it to float. Fitting containers and grab bags with a tether and clip will stop them from falling over the side if put on deck in preparation for abandonment.

Many liferaft service points will let you add extra items, if space will allow, when your raft is re-packed. This is an opportunity to add medication, food, extra water and small items of equipment. Anything put in the raft can be individually vacuum bagged first to keep it dry. I recommend adding electronic distress signalling devices, such as PLBS or SARTS rather than packing extra flares.