Crazy boaters

[carlt]

Who gets to decide what is proper safety equipment? The equipment that failed, in this case, was the fool who decided it was a good idea to take a tiny boat out in these conditions.

 

On the lifeboat I have fixed GPS and Hand-held, depth sounder, fixed VHS, back-up hand-held VHS, Charts, compasses (fixed and hand-held), lie jackets and even a spare engine!

 

I'd happily take out a 20' yacht with life jacket, map, compass and binoculars, though.

[carlt]

Of course it's not just boaters who make stupid decisions (taken from "Yachting Monthly):

 

Commander Michael Collis was returning from Ijmuiden to Harwich with another highly experienced (ex-RNLI) crewman when he was forcibly "rescued" by the RNLI despite not having asked for assistance or being reported over due.The weather was fine.

 

it seems his wife made a simple request to the coastguard to see if they had any news on him.She didnt report him overdue or suggest he may be in trouble.

 

The Commander was told he had to accept the tow by the Lifeboat Coxswain who was acting on instructions from a coastguard survey plane crew.They cited special powers of the secretary of state.It seems that these powers are normally reserved for a situation where pollution, or danger to life, could occur should a ship be in danger of going ashore after refusing tugs. This became legislation following the Union Star repeatedly refusing a tow, leading to the loss of the Solomon Browne

 

Commander Collis asked the RNLI Top Brass to not record the enforced tow as a rescue ,they refused.

 

He has since received an apology from RNLI and Coastguard have admitted their man made a mistake.

 

In the article Commander Collis praises the RNLI crew for the profesional way they carried out the tow.

[John Orentas]

As I understand the situation, when you are out of coastal waters you are also out of the jurisdiction of all the authorities, obviously people would be wise to accept advice from the emergency services but at the end of the day you have no obligations.

 

For a few years we had a 'nut case' up here somewhere who constantly made attempts at sea crossings in what looked like a bath tub, the press and TV loved him but a coastguard chap explained that they have no direct authority in the matter, if he chose to ignore them, there was nothing they could do in law.

 

I wonder what happened to the bloke, is he still taking on oxygen.

[carlt]

We are very quick to be judge and jury, the dead cannot reply to your comments, just hold back until we know the why’s and how’s of this tragic loss of life. Meanwhile I am sure all the above contributors will be sitting back feeling really smug with themselves as usual with their self righteous beliefs.

Signed an ex member of the Miss Marple fan club

"Press Association, 30 Jun 2008 - 15:59

 

Three people from Middlesbrough who died when their boat was overwhelmed by large seas as they set out from harbour did not recognise the dangers they faced, an official report has said.

 

The decision to sail their motor cruiser, Last Call, in the prevailing conditions at the port of Whitby in Yorkshire was "ill-conceived", the report from the Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) said.

 

As the vessel was departing on November 23 last year, the local Royal National Lifeboat Institute radioed the craft to warn of the danger of a strong northerly wind which had created 12-16ft-high waves at the entrance to the harbour.

 

But there was no reply from the Last Call and the cruiser continued towards the harbour entrance where it climbed two large waves in close succession.

 

The second wave caused Andrew Stewart Carrick, 45, and his brother John Russell Carrick, 36, to fall overboard. While Andrew Carrick's partner Jill Russell, 48, was reporting the incident to the coastguard using a mobile phone, a large wave capsized the craft and she was washed overboard.

 

The report said the local lifeboat had already launched in anticipation of such an event and was able to recover the brothers, with Ms Russell being recovered by a search and rescue helicopter.

 

"Regrettably, all three crew died due to immersion in salt water," the MAIB said.

 

The report said: "The decision to sail Last Call in the prevailing conditions was ill conceived. Without a basic level of seamanship and navigational knowledge, no-one on board the boat was able to judge the limitations of Last Call, or recognise the dangers they faced."

 

The report also said: "The skipper's and crew's lack of training and qualification in the use and operation of small craft contributed significantly to the accident. The port information pack produced by Whitby harbour needed to be more comprehensive and include information about the local effects caused by northerly winds."

 

The MAIB added that the cruiser, purchased second-hand, had not undergone a post-construction assessment before being put into service and "was therefore not compliant with the recreational craft directive". The MAIB made various recommendations, including the need for ports to provide all necessary safety information to leisure craft"

 

So now we know:

 

Inexperienced, unqualified, ill equipped idiots who put SAR crews in danger due to their poor judgement.

[howardang]

"Press Association, 30 Jun 2008 - 15:59

 

Three people from Middlesbrough who died when their boat was overwhelmed by large seas as they set out from harbour did not recognise the dangers they faced, an official report has said.

 

The decision to sail their motor cruiser, Last Call, in the prevailing conditions at the port of Whitby in Yorkshire was "ill-conceived", the report from the Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) said.

 

As the vessel was departing on November 23 last year, the local Royal National Lifeboat Institute radioed the craft to warn of the danger of a strong northerly wind which had created 12-16ft-high waves at the entrance to the harbour.

 

But there was no reply from the Last Call and the cruiser continued towards the harbour entrance where it climbed two large waves in close succession.

 

The second wave caused Andrew Stewart Carrick, 45, and his brother John Russell Carrick, 36, to fall overboard. While Andrew Carrick's partner Jill Russell, 48, was reporting the incident to the coastguard using a mobile phone, a large wave capsized the craft and she was washed overboard.

 

The report said the local lifeboat had already launched in anticipation of such an event and was able to recover the brothers, with Ms Russell being recovered by a search and rescue helicopter.

 

"Regrettably, all three crew died due to immersion in salt water," the MAIB said.

 

The report said: "The decision to sail Last Call in the prevailing conditions was ill conceived. Without a basic level of seamanship and navigational knowledge, no-one on board the boat was able to judge the limitations of Last Call, or recognise the dangers they faced."

 

The report also said: "The skipper's and crew's lack of training and qualification in the use and operation of small craft contributed significantly to the accident. The port information pack produced by Whitby harbour needed to be more comprehensive and include information about the local effects caused by northerly winds."

 

The MAIB added that the cruiser, purchased second-hand, had not undergone a post-construction assessment before being put into service and "was therefore not compliant with the recreational craft directive". The MAIB made various recommendations, including the need for ports to provide all necessary safety information to leisure craft"

 

So now we know:

 

Inexperienced, unqualified, ill equipped idiots who put SAR crews in danger due to their poor judgement.

I agree completely, Carl. The tragedy is that the families left behind have to live with the fact that these people lost their lives through an act of gross stupidity and despite being warned repeatedly.

 

Howard