As an exmaple about what you require for a boat....Was called to assist Amble Coastguard and the RNLI a couple of weeks back. A boat was anchored about 200 yds off the estuary at Alnmouth. Dense fog made visibility virtually zero. Fortunately for this guy the Lifeboat assisted by the ILB managed to locate the guy and tow him into Amble harbour where Amble Coastguard met the guy as he was given a temporary berth.
Conversation is roughly as follows...
CG: How did you manage to call for help?
BC: (Crew on rescued vessel i.e. Boat Crew)...Mobile Phone
CG: Do you have a VHF Radio?
BC:No.
CG:What safety equipment do you have on board?
CG
o you have Flares?
BC:No.
CG: What about Life Jackets?
BC: Ah don't know.
CG:In otherwords that'll be a no?
BC: No we don't have lifejackets
CG:First Aid kit?
BC:No.
CG
o you know you were lucky to get a signal on your mobile phone.
BC:Aye.
Turned out the Prop shaft has sheared off and it was literally powerless in dense fog. If a vessel came along at a rate of knots not seeing this guy and his mate, ourselves and the RNLI may well have been dealing with the impossible task of searching for bodies in thick fog.
We gave him a lift back to Alnmouth where his mate said in the car....."Can't understand how the fog came in so quickly".....Says it all about the sea really, and the mentality of taking shortcuts on the basic safety equipment you should have.