Safety first

At Orkney and Shetland Charters we have your ‘Safety’ as our core responsibility and we believe that our pursuit of excellence in all areas of our customer care and service should be matched by striving to make your holiday charter as safe as possible.

The training and the equipment

First Aid – Our staff are all trained in ‘Elementary first aid aboard ship’ which is a Maritime and Coastguard Agency approved course for seafarers. In addition to this each watch on the vessel has at least one crew member trained to the ‘Medical first aid aboard ship’ standard. Regular first aid or medical drills are carried out onboard. The Valhalla has a full first aid kit, an advanced resuscitation kit and an Automatic External Defibrillator.

Fire safety – Our crew are all trained in Shipboard firefighting to the Maritime and Coastguard Agency or Royal Yachting Association standards. Regular fire drills including breathing apparatus practice, are carried out to give our crew the experience to fight any fire quickly and effectively. The vessels carry a self contained fire fighting pump/hose system and also has approved and tested fire extinguishers throughout the vessel.

Medical Oxygen – The Vessel carries 2 emergency oxygen sets and the ability to refill them at sea.

Mandatory safety – The Valhalla is coded through MECAL and the MCA to operate in UK waters up to 150nm from land, in almost all weathers and for up to 6 days at a time. To maintain this coding we are required to have a regular inspection and must have a full set of emergency and safety equipment.

Our safety equipment meets and far exceeds the minimum requirement and we welcome any inspection by club safety officers or individuals.