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Rescue ropes

 Something to grab onto
  (+6, -1)
(+6, -1) 		  [vote for,
against]

It seems like there are always reports on the news of people being swept into rivers during heavy storms, especially during flash floods in the southeast US. It doesn't seem like it would cost all that much to have coils of rope positioned under bridges in those areas. As soon as a dispatcher got a call that someone had been swept into the water they could punch in a code and all of the ropes would drop down, maybe with a small ring attached to them that would inflate as soon as they hit the water so the victim would have a better chance to grab on to it.
—longshot9999, Jul 12 2006

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       if you've ever been in a river that's moving even moderately quickly, you'll realize just how difficult it would be to grab one of these. when you add wind to the equation, the rope might not even be in the water, and if the bridges are far enough apart, you might not be able to stay up long enough to reach this.   

       it's a nice idea, but won't work in reality.
—tcarson, Jul 12 2006
   

       The idea would be to have several ropes drop down, not just one, so it would increase the victims chances of being able to reach one.   

       You're right about having to take wind into account though. The ropes would probably have to be weighted down to keep them in the water. The victim sure isn't going to be able to jump up and grab hold of them.
—longshot9999, Jul 12 2006
   

       Instead of dropping individual ropes to hang straight down, have a single length of rope that loops from one pylon, up and across the underside of the bridge, and down to the next pylon. Use thick floating rope.   

       When this is released into the water, the victim need only hook an arm as (s)he passes by.
—Freefall, Jul 12 2006
   

       Given the damage that these types of flood waters usually do to the standing infrastructure, like bridges, I would doubt this would come close to working in all but the mildest of situations. When rings tossed from the shore would likely be just as useful.   

       So I think making sure all waterfront areas are equipped with rings and lifelines for manual use would be more helpful than some kind of blind launch ystem.
—DrCurry, Jul 12 2006
   

       Freefall - The reason I went with individual lines was to make sure some were still there when the victim went by. The floods carry a lot of trees and stuff along with them and some would be bound to snag some of the lines and break them. It would still be kind of hit and miss though.   

       DrCurry - A lot of times there's no damage to the bridges at all. Case in point, that kid who was swept 5 miles down one of the flood canals recently before someone managed to pull him out.
—longshot9999, Jul 12 2006
   

       Something is better than nothing. (+)
You might need some kind of float mechanism to determine how low the rings should hang. I think that just above the surface of the water would be better than floating in the current, although some of each may be good.		   

       Given the relative speed of flood waters, the lines should have some considerable springiness, so as not to amputate the appendage with which it is caught. ALso would need to have means of not being caught by floating tree limbs, etc.   

       Individual lines should have GPS information and a "victim intercept" signal so that ground-based crews can check them for assistance needed.   

       See "Eprib" for equivalent ocean-satellite based rescue beacon.
—csea, Jul 16 2006
   

       I think a giant fishing net with a boom on the bottom, makes missing almost impossible.
—21 Quest, Jul 16 2006
   


 

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