Congratulations to the NOAA fisheries observer program for getting 11 new/refreshed marine safety instructors trained last week! AMSEA's week-long training in Galveston, Texas, trained 11 NOAA observer trainers and refreshers who will, in turn, train newly hired fish observers in the risks and hazards on fishing vessels and be better prepared to respond to an emergency. This workshop also allowed observer trainers from other observer programs based in the NE, SW, NW of the U.S. and Gulf of Mexico to share information from each other's programs in person after several years of being isolated due to the pandemic.

These new and returning fisheries observer trainers shared lessons learned from commercial fishing disasters and how to prevent and respond to them. They also shared updated information about marine survival equipment, effective emergency procedures, risk assessment, various hands-on methods of instruction, and other relevant topics.

The Galveston NOAA lab graciously hosted AMSEA and this incredible group of trainees and refreshers. Special thanks to Bob Perkins, retired Coast Guard, and Brad Smith, the point man in Galveston who facilitated much of the class. Brad even brought his own flooding control piping system, which fits in a waste bucket for practicing flooding control. Additional thanks to the local USCG FV Safety Examiners, Mr. Whitecotton and Mr. Owen, who added to the information shared, gave the Coast Guard perspective, and helped find a local fishing vessel to perform drills on.

NOAA is just one of many agencies that use our instructor course to train their staff. AMSEA's Marine Safety Instructor Training (MSIT) is a Coast Guard-accepted course that prepares mariners to teach various marine safety courses nationwide. If you want to become a Marine Safety Instructor for your community, please consider attending one of our upcoming MSIT courses. We have a class in Seward on April 24th-29th and another in Sitka on September 25th-30th. In addition, other MSIT workshops will take place outside Alaska in the coming months.

Join AMSEA's community of instructors across the country. AMSEA's marine safety training save lives with the help of skilled, passionate instructors! Check out AMSEA's upcoming classes, or sign up for a class Here!