You often hear that fishing is the most dangerous job in America, and it’s true. We were just reading an article listing the top 10 most dangerous jobs and not surprisingly, commercial fishing tops the list.

Although the weather induced drama of the Deadliest Catch makes for good television, what the media doesn’t usually show are the thousands of hours of training and effort that go into keeping fishermen safe. In the spirit of telling the other side of the story, we’d love to introduce you to the Alaska Marine Safety Education Association (AMSEA), an organization that is working hard to keep fishermen safe through hands-on education.

Through AMSEA’s U. S. Coast Guard-accepted training programs, fishermen are given practical, hands-on experience in survival equipment use and procedures. The courses are designed for fishermen, operators and crew of other commercial vessels, and all mariners who want to be able to respond quickly and effectively to an emergency at sea.

According to the AMSEA website:

Since its founding in 1985, AMSEA has trained more than 1,000 instructors, and 390 teachers and other youth educators. Each year this network of instructors, supported by AMSEA with equipment and educational materials, provides cold water safety education to more than 10,000 school children, commercial fishermen, recreational boaters and agency personnel each year. Since AMSEA’s beginning we have trained over 110,000 people in total.

Topics covered in AMSEA training sessions include cold water survival skills, man overboard recovery, fire fighting, life rafts, maydays, and more.

We’re thankful everyday for the fishermen that work so hard to keep our coolers teeming with the ocean’s bounty. If you’re a fisherman or know someone who is, check out AMSEA and stay safe out there!