Fatality at Penarth Marina

oldmanofthehills said:
People drown while falling into harbours all the time - usually drunk but sometimes just careless. Not much the marina operator can do about it.Two falling in together is strange though.
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I remember hearing about a double fatality at Bradwell many years ago. I think that an inebriated couple was involved and that one went in to save the other and both succumbing.
 
oldmanofthehills said:
People drown while falling into harbours all the time - usually drunk but sometimes just careless. Not much the marina operator can do about it.Two falling in together is strange though.
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The marina operator can make sure that uneven surfaces are repaired promptly, lighting is fixed and have accessible and visible swimming ladders at useful distances and kept clean. Many marinas don't seem to do all three but don't know this marina.
 
RupertW said:
The marina operator can make sure that uneven surfaces are repaired promptly, lighting is fixed and have accessible and visible swimming ladders at useful distances and kept clean. Many marinas don't seem to do all three but don't know this marina.
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Alternatively people can take a bit of responsibility for their own actions (particularly alcohol consumption in relation to OMoTH's post) and not try to fob it off on someone else who might just have deep enough pockets/insurance for a claim.
 
Some unfortunate soul had lost his life in the course of this storm and his family have lost a loved one; have we a shred of evidence before heading off on this inebriation tangent? And who are we to judge anyway?
 
dom said:
Some unfortunate soul had lost his life in the course of this storm and his family have lost a loved one; have we a shred of evidence before heading off on this inebriation tangent? And who are we to judge anyway?
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Fair comment.
 
Elecglitch said:
Alternatively people can take a bit of responsibility for their own actions (particularly alcohol consumption in relation to OMoTH's post) and not try to fob it off on someone else who might just have deep enough pockets/insurance for a claim.
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What a terrible way of ��ing at life. The main purpose of a marina is to provide a place where you can get completely trollied and still wake up on your boat without that embarrassing climb aboard a strangers boat on a mooring because you can’t focus enough to find yours.
 
Sometimes it's a combination of circumstances. I was sailing with a group of blind people and, stopping overnight at an Orwell marina, one of them being escorted by a sighted, sober person ended up in the water. We fished him out and got him dried out and little harm was done. Then coming back from the facilities, where I'd used a hair dryer to dry out his wallet, I put my foot where I was totally confident there was a pontoon finger and it wasn't there. Splash. A combination of the lighting (adequate, but not wonderful), a narrow finger where all those I'd walked past had been wider, and a spring in just the right position to look like the edge of the finger had caught me out, as it had the guide for the blind person.All the same, I'd put money on the blood alcohol levels of the majority of people who drown in marinas being high enough get them a ban if they were driving.
 
Many boating and waterside accidents, particularly embarkation accidents, do involve alcohol and I am fairly sure the drowning in Swansea Marina, and those in Bristol Feeder Canal involved intoxication.

We have no reason to suggest the poor unfortunate at Penarth was inebriated, I merely made comment because in these litigacious times there seems to be an assumption that Marinas and others bear all responsibility for users misfortunes. Being blown in by a storm which another poster has suggested is almost act of god. The cause however is no consolation to friends and relatives.
 
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