Single view of News

Friday the 21st June 2019, the Viking Ship Museum will hold a co-ordinated rescue drill on Roskilde Fjord, together with Østsjællands Beredskab (ØSB) and the Army’s Joint Rescue Coordination Centre (JRCC). 
The drill should represent a realistic scenario for a capsize incident. One of the Viking Ship Museum’s traditional Nordic boats, Sunnfjord, will be capsized and the 12-man strong crew will be ‘rescued’.
One of the Museum’s motor boats, Tine, will also take part in the drill and will raise Sunnfjord as well as any of the loose components of the boat that are floating in the water. Tine is our regular ‘stand-by’ boat, used during the sailing season. 
Østsjællands Beredskab are providing two jet skis from their department in Roskilde, as well as a RIB from Jyllinge. 

As part of the drill is focused on testing how quickly a rescue team can reach a vessel in distress, the drill will take place at high speed – also at a higher speed than it’s normally allowed to sail on the inner waters of Roskilde Fjord. 
The motor boat Martha will also follow Sunnfjord closely, so observers from the rescue corps can get a first-hand impression of how the drill unfolds, documenting the process via drones as well as ensuring the safety of the participants in the drill and all others on the fjord that day. JRCC will take part with a rescue helicopter, if it’s not already in use on other actions. 

So it’ll be a day with hectic activity on the fjord and it can all seem quite dramatic if you don’t know exactly what’s going on. But there’s absolutely no need for concern as it’s a controlled drill.
If you meet any concerned spectators, please reassure them that it’s a planned capsize and not a genuine accident!

Due diligence

Luckily, this isn’t a regular sight on Roskilde Fjord but if bad luck should strike one day, then it’s a good idea to have trained what to do beforehand. Every year, the Viking Ship Museum sails on the fjord with more than 16,000 guests in traditional Nordic boats, and many private leisure craft, kayaks and dinghies also use the fjord. It’s therefore important that we train together to prepare for a possible accident, so that everyone is prepared and knows what is required of them if the worst should occur. 

Programme for the drill:
11:00 Briefing in the Museum’s Sailing Service building with participants from the Museum and observers from ØSB. 
11:15 Sailing to the drill location in Sankt Hans Bay.
12:00 The boat will be capsized, the crew enter the water. The skipper and mates will take stock of the situation, gather up those in distress and if necessary, inflate the life rafts. Telephone contact/emergency contact will be established with ØSB.
12:15 ØSB’s jet skis, RIB and JRCC’s helicopter will arrive to the drill site. The crew will be rescued and brought in land for assessment. 
13:00 The drill is finished.