Boating Accident

[dabsolute470]

anyone heard how the casulty is ?
are the people from the crouch ?

 

[Searush]

Around this neck of the woods that would mean never going fast. Have you seen a chart of the Thames estuary and surrounding areas? Now I know to you never going fast wouldn't be a problem, but for others who have a boat designed for it, it is. Obviously in this area it just needs lots of care, unfortunately it looks like more than was used in this case.
(snip).

You are right that I am not familiar with the area, tho' I have seen plenty of charts & read many cruisers based around there. I am also very familiar with shallow silting estuaries like the Mersey, Dee & Conway plus the Caernarfon Bar. Plotter info is rarely updated, people by a chart & that's generally it, & few are easy to update yourself.

I like to use the plotter for pottering around places like the Swellies at slack water, but eyeballs & sounders are best for channels in sandbanks. I draw about 4', I suspect that mobo was probably even shallower draught. Estuaries usually have noticeable tides & they wil often reveal shallow water obstructions.

I still think it is not an accident so much as a self-inflicted injury.

 

[Supine Being]

Calm day, good visibility - even if the buoys aren't on the charts or plotter they really should impinge on the retinas of anyone who is keeping a reasonable lookout.

Sounds very much like another "plotter assisted accident".

I can't argue with that.

 

[Burnham Bob]

having sailed up the new buoyed route to the Swin Spitway from Burnham its difficult to see how you can miss the yellow buoys that mark the northern edge of the swallowtail bank. however, our 5 knots under sail is very different from 20 knots under power. it's like on land, sensible speed varies with conditions and skill.........sometimes 70 mph on a motorway is ludicrously slow, sometimes its far too fast. but in an area like the swalllowtail you are in a restricted channel and at speed a small deviation could put you on the bank and referring to a chart when the channel is so clearly buoyed is a little puzzling. i was always taught that the best fix is a known buoy when using a paper chart and even on a big scale plotter i would have thought its easy to be a cable or so out.

 

[rubberduck]

This was no accident, just a lunartic showing off - 22 knots up a river?

Now thats a very intelligent comment, have you any knowledge of the area ?

P.S. I think we have found the dipstick

 

[dabsolute470]

hahahaha
the dipstick without a passport who navigates by ipad in a tractor....lol
stay in brighton, if you run aground there you will be on the beach and can buy an icecream.
paddington i am sorry but you do not know these waters and as yet we do not know how the people involved are, could be seriously injured or the circumstances that lead to the grounding... happens to the best of us !
i wish you well and hope you remain in deep waters.

 

[David of Essex]

Just a quick update to the post. The women involved sustained mild concussion and is OK now.
When I first posted this thread I did ask the question, should the door to the lower saloon be closed when under power. After having a chat with the local RNLI they said this would be a grey area. If the door had been closed and damaged in the accident then any person in the lower saloon could have been trapped.
David

 

[STEVEDUNSTABLE]

Just a quick update to the post. The women involved sustained mild concussion and is OK now.
When I first posted this thread I did ask the question, should the door to the lower saloon be closed when under power. After having a chat with the local RNLI they said this would be a grey area. If the door had been closed and damaged in the accident then any person in the lower saloon could have been trapped.
David

glad the woman is ok................On the baises that you "you know your own boat best"....when on board my s24 Thanks Mum, i make it plain that MY, (or my bruvs if im incapable), word is LAW.....in my opinion, this removes any chance of "dodgey" behaviour. todate we have NEVER had a prob of ANY kind and everyone onboard has been happy and "returned safely n undamaged"..

 

[dabsolute470]

Hi Steve

thanks for the update and glad to hear all are ok.

we always keep our saloon door in the locked open position when at sea, this is mainly because people dont close the door properly and it keeps banging..

was there much damage to the boat ?

steve

 

[David of Essex]

Hi Steve

thanks for the update and glad to hear all are ok.

we always keep our saloon door in the locked open position when at sea, this is mainly because people dont close the door properly and it keeps banging..

was there much damage to the boat ?

steve

Boat being lifted next week. The owner said he didn't believe much damage as the boat was flying to get back to the marina.
David

 

[Searush]

Boat being lifted next week. The owner said he didn't believe much damage as the boat was flying to get back to the marina.
David

Oh that's OK then, the props won't have touched the bank if they were out of the water. But then, why did it stop so suddenly?

Got to be at least bent shafts & props I would think, or was it an outdrive which can kick up? How can a boat not be damaged at those speeds? and why did it need RNLI recovery if it was still running OK?

I have hit an unmarked wreck at 4-5kts, but I have big cast iron keels well bolted to substantial stubs so all I did was chip a small bit of cast iron off. Wouldn't like to try that with plain GRP or my prop or rudder mind.