Survival Time in Cold Water
Time to exhaustion and death for humans in cold water.
The survival time for a person in cold water is limited as indicated in the table below:
Water Temperature | Exhaustion Time | Death Time | |
---|---|---|---|
(oF) | (oC) | (hours) | (hours) |
80 | 27 | unlimited | unlimited |
70 - 80 | 21 - 27 | 3 - 12 | 3 - unlimited |
60 - 70 | 16 - 21 | 2 - 7 | 2 - 40 |
50 - 60 | 10 - 16 | 1 - 2 | 1 - 6 |
40 - 50 | 4 - 10 | 0.5 - 1 | 1 - 3 |
32.5 - 40 | 0 - 4 | 0.25 - 0.5 | 0.5 - 1.5 |
32.5 | 0 | < 15 min | 15 - 45 min |