Marine accidents in waters below 50 degrees F are five times more likely to end in death, Vittone said.

CNN: 'This is the Charm Blow, we are abandoning ship'

We recognise how important it is to have marine accidents reduced bearing in mind that fishing is statistically 13 times more dangerous than coal mining.

BBC: Anger at fishing safety claims

But more than that, Hopkins's father was the author of A Handbook of Average and A Manual of Marine Insurance, both standard reference books for negotiating, averaging, and adjusting the liabilities to insurance underwriters of cargo losses and shipwrecks, so Hopkins grew up in a world wet with marine accidents and was especially attentive to them.

NPR: Excerpt: 'Exiles'

Several accidents have happened in the past year involving Marine training in Southern California.

WSJ: Seven Marines Die as Helicopters Collide