2012 ANNUAL SYMPOSIUM
Members of the Canadian Coast Guard extract a ‘mock’ hypothermic victim as part of the Cold Water Workshop held at the 2012 Symposium.
‘It was one of the best symposiums yet!’
That was just one of the comments from the 2012 CSBC symposium held in beautiful Gravenhurst, Ontario.
The 2012 symposium kicked off on Friday, September 21st with a Cold Water Instructors’ Course and a Cold Water Workshop for first responders was held the following day. Then on Sunday Sept 23rd, the symposium moved into high gear as delegates from across Canada and around the world gathered to discuss and share important insights about boating safety.
Symposium attendees enjoy a presentation of a sample of the fleet of vessels operated by the Ontario Provincial Police with Sergeant Karen Harrington.More than 40 rescue specialists attended the pre-symposium workshop taught by Dr. Gordon Giesbrecht, (a.k.a. Professor Popsicle), a thermophysiologist from the University of Manitoba and cold water expert. At the workshop rescuers learned the techniques to properly extract, transport and rewarm a hypothermic victim.
Following the workshop, delegates were treated to 2 full days of presentations on a variety of boating safety topics and perspectives on boating safety from around the globe.
Jean Murray, Chair of the Canadian Safe Boating Council welcomes delegates from across Canada and around the world to the 2012 CSBC Annual Symposium.On the Canadian front, presenters from the Office of Boating Safety, Safe and Quiet Lakes Muskoka, Ontario Chinese Anglers Association, Canadian Coast Guard and the National Marine Manufacturers Association-Canada offered insights and updates on what was happening across Canada. An afternoon workshop discussed the demographic, socio-economic and technological trends in boating and what they mean for boating safety and education strategies.
Internationally, presentations from Jeff Hoedt, Office of Boating Safety, U.S. Coast Guard, Howard Glenn, Boating Safety and Maritime Affairs, New South Wales, Australia, Peter Chennell, Royal National Lifeboat Institution, United Kingdom and Alistair Thomson from New Zealand provided boating safety perspectives from around the world.
But symposium attendees did not spend all their time in-doors. The symposium featured an afternoon of waterfront activities with a demonstration of extraction, wrapping and transportation techniques for a hypothermic victim and a presentation of some of the current fleet of vessels operated by the Ontario Provincial Police and a chance to get aboard and inspect them.
Shortly, the CSBC web site will provide a full review of the conference and post the presentations. In the meantime mark your calendars for September 23 - 25th for the 2013 Annual CSBC Symposium which will be held at the Hilton Whistler Resort in Whistler B.C.
Peter Chennell, Marine Safety Operations Manager, Royal National Lifeboat Institution, United Kingdom offers some perspectives on the past, present and future for his organization. 
A line up of some O.P.P. vessels that currently patrol Ontario’s waterways.