# When should a PLB or EPIRB (emergency beacons) be triggered? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 2, 2017, 8:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-should-a-plb-or-epirb-emergency-beacons-be-triggered/800473 "2017-11-02T08:03:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2017, 8:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-should-a-plb-or-epirb-emergency-beacons-be-triggered/800473/1 "2017-11-02T08:03:49Z")
I backpack and my wife bought me a PLB. It says on the web site that it’s a last resort measure. Getting lost for a night isn’t an excuse to trigger a PLB. It’s for life threatening emergencies. The Cavalry will come charging over the hill, and they won’t be happy if it’s not a genuine life or death emergency. [https://www.rei.com/learn/expert-advice/personal-locator-beacons.html](https://www.rei.com/learn/expert-advice/personal-locator-beacons.html) That’s pretty much the reason the two ladies stranded at sea gave for not using their beacon. It’s been repeatedly pounded into everybody’s head that these beacons are for life or death, OMG emergencies. I understand their salty sea story is one heck of a tall tale. But it does raise an interesting question about triggering a beacon. [https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.washingtonpost.com/amphtml/news/checkpoint/wp/2017/10/31/they-told-a-dramatic-story-of-surviving-months-lost-at-sea-now-the-two-american-sailors-are-defending-it/](https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.washingtonpost.com/amphtml/news/checkpoint/wp/2017/10/31/they-told-a-dramatic-story-of-surviving-months-lost-at-sea-now-the-two-american-sailors-are-defending-it/) But is this guy right that they could use a beacon when they still had food and water and a sea worthy ship? They were still hoping the tide would take them to land. From the PLB web site > [@](#): > > Important: A Personal Locator Beacon should be activated only in situations of grave and imminent danger, and only as a last resort when all means of self-rescue have been exhausted. From a guy criticizing the Women’s salty sea tale. I agree you don’t wait until you’re hours from death. But, this guy seems pretty darn casual about triggering a EPIRB. Aren’t there potentially huge fines for irresponsibly triggering a beacon? > **[19 REASONS THIS “SURVIVAL” STORY SMELLS FISHY](https://unreasonablydangerousonionrings.com/2017/10/31/19-reasons-this-survival-story-smells-fishy/)** > > Have you missed me? Trick question; I know you’ve missed me. Frankly, the main reason I haven’t been writing is laziness. I make no bones about it. The second reason is that I got hit b… > [@](#): > > No, woman, that is not how that works. You do not wait until you are hours from death to turn on the EPIRB, because it will probably take longer than that to get rescued. If you are stranded, you turn on the fucking beacon. If your sails and motor are broken, you turn on the fucking beacon. If you’re running out of food, you turn on the fucking beacon. I didn’t trigger my PLB on a trip two years ago. I got off the marked trail for a couple days. I was getting concerned but finally found the trail again. > [@](#): > > “We asked why during this course of time they did not activate the EPIRB,” a Coast Guard spokeswoman, Petty Officer 2nd Class Tara Molle, told the AP. “She had stated they never felt like they were truly in distress, like in a 24-hour period they were going to die.” ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2017, 10:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-should-a-plb-or-epirb-emergency-beacons-be-triggered/800473/2 "2017-11-02T10:20:25Z")
It’s a judgement call. If you don’t feel like you need help then I guess you don’t need the EPIRB. That said, I think you should be conscious of the fact that a search may have been started for you, in which case you should use the beacon so that less time is wasted in the search. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2017, 11:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-should-a-plb-or-epirb-emergency-beacons-be-triggered/800473/3 "2017-11-02T11:36:28Z")
Interesting story about one clueless owner of a PLB. > **[The Problem With PLBs, ACR, Spot Messenger, Etc. - The Backcountry Ski...](https://wildsnow.com/2323/plb-rescue-beacon-acr/)** > > Update, March 3. Wow. Rocky Mountain Rescue Group (RMRG) persevered and solved the mystery of the ghost personal locator beacon (PLB) that’s been plaguing them like something from a cheap horror film. Individuals from RMRG used radio signal locator... The big concern is these beacons may not be taken seriously if the public starts misusing them. The Rocky Mountain Rescue Group (RMRG) must be pretty frustrated after this incident. I registered mine soon after I got it. It’s a good safety feature in case something goes wrong on a backpacking trip. > [@](#): > > According to the Denver Post, the unit ended up being triggered nine times over a 12 week period, thus scrambling various law enforcement and SAR teams. ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2017, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-should-a-plb-or-epirb-emergency-beacons-be-triggered/800473/4 "2017-11-02T13:00:33Z")
I recall from the initial story of these two amateur sailors that they were shooting flares periodically in hopes of getting help. If you are doing that, without question you should activate your beacon. ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2017, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-should-a-plb-or-epirb-emergency-beacons-be-triggered/800473/5 "2017-11-02T13:12:30Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > Interesting story about one clueless owner of a PLB. > [The Problem With PLBs, ACR, Spot Messenger, Etc. - The Backcountry Ski Touring Blog](https://www.wildsnow.com/2323/plb-rescue-beacon-acr/) It’s weird that the ACR beacon worked without the user having to register it. That incident was 8 years ago; I wonder if ACR has changed their policy. It’s also weird that the switch didn’t clearly indicate that it was to be used only in an emergency. Or maybe it did clearly indicate that, but the user was a drooling idiot. I have a [Spot Messenger](https://www.findmespot.com/en/index.php?cid=100) affixed to my motorcycle. It’s been a few years now, but I’m pretty sure I was required to register it before it would work. It provides real-time non-emergency tracking as soon as you turn it on; if you need a real emergency rescue, you have to flip up a little cover that’s clearly labeled “S.O.S.” and push the red button under it; after that, you’ve got a five-minute grace period for cancellation, after which it calls in the cavalry. The instructions make it pretty clear that when that call goes out, emergency rescue services (i.e. an ambulance or helicopter, depending on where you are) will be sent to your location. I am always concerned about some asshole activating it while my bike is parked somewhere, so I take the Messenger with me whenever I leave the bike in public and out of my sight. > [@aceplace57](#): > > But, this guy seems pretty darn casual about triggering a EPIRB. I don’t think so. He was pretty clear about the circumstances that justify EPIRB activation, and those circumstances all seem pretty reasonable to me. > [@aceplace57](#): > > I didn’t trigger my PLB on a trip two years ago. I got off the marked trail for a couple days. I was getting concerned but finally found the trail again. In your situation, you were still mobile, and (presumably) still had enough food, so no crisis, at least not yet. But if at some point you got hurt and couldn’t walk, or you had maybe a day’s worth of food left, or your tent got shredded, AND you were still completely lost, I’d say that justifies PLB activation.