A hand-held red flare designed to withstand exceptional environmental exposure and to perform reliably under extreme conditions. The flare is encased in a steel tube for safety to eliminate damage from burning ashes. For greater operational ease and safety, it is fitted with an integral pull, twist and strike firing mechanism. Additional features of this signal are that waterproofing is achieved without the use of sealing tapes, hence easier operation, and once ignited the flare will continue to operate if immersed in water.