UK Coastguard adopts new safety ID scheme

RYA SafeTrx app is designed to improve safety at sea and cut vital minutes off the time taken to pinpoint a casualty’s location by closely monitoring a vessel’s journey and alerting designated emergency contacts following a failure to arrive on time.

“When we receive an emergency call we need a huge amount of information fast. This app helps us access all your details, so that you can get a swifter response with the right resources,” said Richard Parkes, the MCA’s director of maritime operations & HM Coastguard.

“The precise geolocation feature for example, allows the Coastguard to know where the caller is, an important consideration when the person in distress is unsure of where they are, disoriented, injured or unfamiliar with the area.

Fast and free

The free RYA SafeTrx mobile app and website, now supersedes the HM Coastguard CG66 scheme.

It combines a more technologically cutting-edge version of the CG66 database function with additional lifesaving technologies so that a 999 call can be made to the Coastguard at the touch of a button.

The app can be used free of charge in UK territorial waters. Maritime search and rescue agencies in Ireland, the Netherlands, Germany, Spain, Finland, Norway, Cyprus, South Africa and Australia have already adopted the app.

For interested parties who do not wish to use the mobile app, there is an option to register their details online at https://safetrx.rya.org.uk/login.html.

By Anne-Marie Causer