FIND A FLOAT
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Year Published: 1970s
Format: 16mm
Description: This short 1970s film by the National Safety Council "Find a Float" takes a look at water safety and what to do in the event of an emergency situation. It opens with a water skier enjoying the sport and conducting spin jumps and dodging around buoys (1:08) as well as a family of three water skiing together (1:58). Other recreational water activities beyond water skiing include diving from a diving board (2:07) and scuba diving (2:16). While many see the water as a place of sport, some see the waters as a place of danger, especially those who cannot swim (2:25). The first incident involves a fisherman named John Davidson who takes himself on a fishing outing with a young companion to relive himself of his daily troubles (2:39). John catches a fish (3:37) and shows it to the boy on the shoreline watching him. In his excitement he stands and proceeds to start the boat while standing (4:08) he falls into the water. Unfortunately, when he pulled the starter rope, the engine was in gear and the boat takes off (4:11). He is left helpless splashing in the water as the boy runs for help (4:22). Another character, Joe Schultz, had taken his wife and two kids out on the water in a small row boat (4:44). Two speed boats come zipping through and almost hit him and his family (5:10). He stands and waves his oar to warn them not to hit him and he ends up falling off the boat (5:27). In an attempt to get back on the boat, he approaches the side and therefore capsizes the whole thing and lands his family in the water as well (5:39). A woman on the shoreline witnesses the incident and yells for help, though there is no one around to hear her (5:48). A fourteen-year-old girl named Alice Templeton enjoys herself while on a float listening to music (6:01). Her parents are on a nearby dock fishing when she had drifted out to deep water unknowingly and cannot swim (6:14). When her radio takes a spill into the water, she tries to save it landing herself in the water as well instead (6:25). A zoom in is shown of the picnic basket her parents brought which could have been used to save her as it does in fact float without the lid on it (6:48). Her parents could have also used a long pole once she was close enough to pull her onto the dock (7:03). The wooden folding chairs left sitting on the dock also float (7:14). In the John Davidson scenario (7:30), he should have ensured the motor was not in gear prior to starting and he should have started the motor from a seated position (7:36). While the boy did what he thought was best and ran to get help, he could have used his capped gallon thermos as an improvised floatation device (7:51). Joe Schultz should not have stood when the speed boats came by (8:07) though he could have also attempted to re-enter the boat from the stern which would have kept the entire boat from capsizing (8:14). The woman on the shoreline also had a spare tire in her trunk (8:29) which was buoyant enough to support her as she swum it out to them as well as the entire family as they floated back to safety (8:57). The film points to the fact that none of the instances should have occurred as there were many options for floatation devices on hand (9:12). They all should have also had Coastguard approved life saving vests or floatation cushions out with them (9:28). An approved ring like buoy could have been on hand as well (9:33). The most important tool of safety however, would have been for all of them to have known how to swim (9:41). It only takes 14 lbs. of buoyancy to keep an average human afloat (10:04). A span of random objects that can float follow including a capped bleach bottle (10:07), a branch (10:09), wooden bench or a surf board (10:24). The film concludes as a man in the water looks at all of the objects just shown floating around him and appearing to decide which one to use (10:33).
Transcription
[Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] for some very fortunate people water is a playground they skim over it knife into it cut cleanly through it prowl around under it but for many of us water is not a playground it's a place of peril in disguise [Music] you're John Davidson you're a young machinist to the gear company or just a neophyte salesman with a printing company or or anybody working any place you've got a wife two kids and a small neat home out in some anonymous subdivision lately you seem to have a chronic case of the blahs you really don't know what it is but nothing seems to be going right maybe you've been working too hard maybe you've been having a losing bout with the bills or maybe you're just plain dragged down by the everyday treadmill business of making a living it's Saturday afternoon and you grabbed a couple of quiet hours away from the grind a couple of hours for yourself just like that in a flash everything's forgotten bill from the dentist the everyday business of earning a living everything they're excited now inside you've got a feeling the fish is a good omen your luck is changing then you do a couple of very foolish things you stand up in the boat and pull on the starter rope and just started the boat while the engine was in here [Applause] your Joe Schultz butcher you're a proud butcher because you own your own shop you sell good meat prime stuff and everybody knows it business is getting better and better every day that's secondary the butcher shop is only the means of taking good care of your wife and family that's what life's all about you're a family man that's it kids have fun have fun everybody's having fun right [Music] [Music] you're Alice Templeton today all your senses are alive the Sun is basking warm every now and then there's a flutter of a soft breeze you've done a very dangerous thing you've drifted out into deep water and you don't know how to swim but then again no one ever told you that floating toys are dangerous a being oblivious to danger is not unique when you're 14 years old [Music] we come back to the picnic chest because it's important it could have been used to save Alice Templeton's life it floats with or without the lid on it it would support a 14 year old girl in the water and the long cane pole could have been used to pull her back into her unfulfilled future you see these wooden folding chairs they float - if you'd been there you probably would have pushed one of them out - Alice tragically they were left standing on the dock and tragically this incident has an ironic similarity to the others none of them had to happen John Davidson could have made certain that his motor was out of gear before he started it and played it doubly safe by starting the motor from a seated position the youngster did what he thought was best he ran for help he had a gallon of help right at hand all he had to do was deliver it to John a captain thermos jug will keep coffee hot or a nice beverage cold for hours and even if half filled with either one it'll keep a 195-pound man afloat so long he'll probably end up on coast guard reports as a navigational hazard sure Joe Schultz shouldn't have stood up in the boat and he shouldn't have attempted to re-enter over the side he'd gone to the stern it would have been the way to do it and the kids were cowboying around like a couple of accidents looking for a place to happen but what could she do there were four of them in the water she wasn't a strong swimmer the answer was in the trunk of the car [Music] another happy ending none of them had to happen life-saving improvised flotation aids were close at hand in every case each helpless bystander could have been a helpful bystander was only a matter of thinking in terms of improvised flotation aids of course none of the parties should have been out in the water without Coast guard-approved life-saving devices what do you think the sequel would have been if the entire Schultz family had been equipped with life preservers or flotation cushions what if the pier so close to out us had been equipped with an approved ring light buoy most of all one of all the people involved had known how to swim learning how to swim is fun wonderful exercise and in a water emergency it can quickly become the most important skill you've ever learned what would you do if you witnessed a drowning type accident do you know that it takes only 14 pounds of buoyancy to support the average adult in the water a cap plastic breech bottle will do the job or or a branch a ladder a water-ski a wooden bench a metal ice chest plastic beach toys a string full of decoys a surfboard how do you remember all these things we don't have to in a drowning emergency try everything in sight chances are something will float [Music]
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