| We
had a horrible, but preventable tragedy this past summer
in the Boston area.....on a beautiful July afternoon two
guys went sailing off Boston Light in a stiff breeze -
their first mistake: not listening to, or ignoring the
weather forecast. A lot of other people did the same
thing, but were lucky - these guys were not. The sky
turned black, the wind picked up to 60 knots, and the
seas grew to 10-12 feet, as severe thunderstorms blew
in. In minutes, there were a half-dozen or so boats on
the rocks, and one that had capsized with 2 adults and 6
children aboard! (they were all rescued, thankfully) I
got this info from an eyewitness who himself was out
sailing, and told me that in 30 years of being on the
water he has never been so scared in his life!
The
captain of the sailboat I was referring to was knocked
overboard by the boom while he was frantically trying to
get the sails down. He DROWNED
in FULL VIEW OF LAND
and a whole bunch of other boats who didn’t know what
was happening to him because they were too pre-occupied
with their own critical situations. The man left on
board did not even know how to use the radio! When he
finally figured it out, he could not tell the Coast
Guard where he was located! He was from out of town, so
he couldn’t even give them a dead reckoning - the
ultimate irony is - the local Coast Guard station was
less than ½ mile away! But the guy didn’t know it
‘cause he wasn’t familiar with the area. It was very
frustrating for both him and the Coast Guard; by the
time they got to him it was too late for the captain. He
drowned because the only crew on board DID
NOT KNOW WHAT TO DO!
A
very tragic story, and it never should have happened!
Anyway, thanks for the course and all the neat info - I
have it in my ‘Favorite Places’ file, and I’m
going there now!
Janice
Janice,
I
think your story is a very significant and important
issue and would like to publish it on the Nautical Know
How site so others will possibly learn from this tragic
mistake.
Capt.
Matt
Yes,
you may use that story at your site - if it helps even
one person to realize that it is imperative to teach the
crew the basics, it will be worth it. A mere 5 minutes
or so at the beginning of each trip would do it - a
mini-briefing, of sorts. The following is some of what I
think the captain should cover, at least briefly:
- Go
over where the life jackets are located so that if
the captain gives the order for everyone to don
them, people aren’t wasting precious time tripping
over each and tearing things apart trying to find
them! It’s amazing how many boats have them tucked
away somewhere out of sight, and the majority of
guests/crew have no idea where to find them. By the
way, the part of the USCG requirement concerning
PFD's states that they must be readily accessible.
That does not mean in the storage compartment in the
V-berth under two cases of your favorite beverage.
- Point
out the fire extinguisher locations and instruct
passengers/crew how to use them.
- Conduct
a demonstration on how to use the VHF radio. Discuss
which channel in your area is the emergency channel,
and how to pinpoint your location on the GPS (if you
have one), in order to give it to the emergency
personnel.
- If
something goes wrong and the captain hasn’t
ordered you to do anything, GET
OUT OF THE WAY!
It’s amazing how many people just stand there
dumfounded in the middle of chaos - it dives me
nuts! We lost an engine in a 30 knot wind on the
Charles River on the 4th of July where there were
literally thousands of boats anchored and rafted all
around us, and within seconds we were in extreme
danger of a collision. We were trying to retrieve a
tow line from a fellow boater, and my landlubber
brother sat in a chair right in the middle of the
back deck (we were on a 32-footer with about 10
people on board, and I was first mate) - after I
tripped over him and his chair for the third time, I
yelled at him to get out of the way - go into the
cabin and stay there! He was hurt, of course, and
took it personally, but I tried to explain to him
later that on a boat in a critical situation, if you
are not part of the solution, you are part of the
problem! GET
OUT OF THE WAY! (We
didn’t collide, but it was very close, and
everyone was really stressed out for a while
afterward).
- It
may also be a good idea to just show people where
some basic equipment is located - life ring, boat
hooks, gaffs, lines, first aid kit, etc., just in
case they are asked to retrieve them in a hurry.
Also, I always tell people where the sharpest knife
on board is located, just in case it’s needed in a
hurry, to cut a line.
Maybe
it would be a good idea to compose a "Crew
Test" for those people who don’t own their own
boat, but spend a lot of time on friends’ boats! I
think your web site is great - the graphics are
fantastic, and the pages move quickly. The information
is wonderful, and oh - I love the way the knots tie and
untie themselves! It’s the first time I finally
figured out how to tie a correct bowline, seeing it done
that way (yeah, I know, it’s not that hard, but it’s
been sort of a mental block with me - something like
when I was trying to understand college algebra!)!
Thanks
Janice! |
