SHIPWRECK SUIT

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 05, Issue 56, 22 May 1942, Page 4

SHIPWRECK SUIT

BRINGS BRITISH INVENTOR LIFE SAVING AWARD •T A "shipwreck suit'/'" is the latest British invention for saving seamen's lives. It is made of a bright yello%V rubberised material- in two parts—combined trousers and overshoes ancl a hood and coat. The coat sleeves are long enough to cover the hands, and slits in the trouser legs allow the limbs to be taken out easily for message. The hood is used as a carrier for the complete outfit, which weighs 31bs 6ozs. It' isi to be worn in lifeboats* or on raftsi and its bright yellow colour shows up the shipwrecked to rescue ships and aircraft. The inventor is Mr Thomas Metcalfe, 0.8. E., who isi Administrative Principal in charge of the llfosaving appliances of the'-Ministry of Transport. The electric light fitting now used for life-saving waistcoats was also Mr Metcalfe's, idea: the light is clipped to the collar strap, and the watertight battery, lasting for ten hours, is kept in: a pocket. The Societ3 r of Arts has awarded Mr Metcalfe a £50 prize for his * wreck suit. This prize given annually since 1926 for inven- -<■, tions "advancing the science or practice of navigation": last year it went to the inventor of portable radio equipment for lifeboats. It is a bequest from Thomas Gray whose father wrote the well known rhymes fcr teaching seamen the rules of navigation, including the familiar "Green to Green, or Red to Red, Perfect safety—go ahead."