Get Connected for Rescue
Some information about DSC Radios

Many boaters with Digital Selective Calling (DSC) radios think they can just push the red “Distress” button on the front to call for help in an emergency. However, most boaters with DSC radios haven't registered the radios to get a Maritime Mobile Service Identity (MMSI) number and haven't connected them to their GPS. In fact, a recent review of Search and Rescue (SAR) cases involving Digital Selective Calling (DSC) radios reveals that 90% of the cases lacked the accurate position information that could have been provided automatically if GPS were connected to the radio. To the recreational boater, the MMSI number is the Caller ID for their boat. Even if the radio is not connected to a GPS, the MMSI number will enable the Distress Alert function of the DSC radio (the Red Button) to send out a call for help on channel 70. This Alert will be heard by nearby boats and provide a Text Alert message to the Coast Guard. This message will include the boat’s MMSI number and that will enable the Coast Guard to identify: owners name, address, vessel name and characteristics, emergency contact, and homeport. As usual, the Coast Guard will respond to the vessel in distress by radio and work to identify its position. If the radio is connected to the GPS, the vessel’s position will be transmitted during the Distress Alert. This will give the Coast Guard an accurate location of the distress and may allow nearby vessels to assist. It will greatly increase the likelihood of rescue.

Although the great technology of these radios can “take the Search out of Search and Rescue”, it does boaters little good if it’s not been implemented correctly. Here are the three steps that recreational boaters need to accomplish to make the Distress Alert function work:

1. Register the radio to obtain an MMSI number. (It’s free and can be done online.)
2. Program that number into the radio. (The DSC radio Distress Alert features will not work without the MMSI number programmed into the radio.)
3. Connect the DSC radio to the GPS. (They may need the help of a qualified technician to do this.)

If boaters take those three steps, help will come quickly when they push the red “Distress” button. If they don’t take those three steps, it’s likely that help will be delayed. And that could cost lives.