Mayday, River Blackwater Saturday morning

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tillergirl

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Nasty time about 10.30am ish. Essex Lad and I were just dropping TG's mooring when a breathless 'Mayday, Mayday, yacht Millie' came over 16. Took a second go before Thames CG answered and then in the to and fro it was revealed that Millie was a Silluette 17 sinking in the Blackwater. Position was initially given off Bradwell - no GPS, presumably already underwater - very shortly later it became clear he was heading for the Tollesbury shore where he successfully beached her and sat on top. Lifeboat called, another Mersea boat 'Winter's Bride' stated they were heading for the location (and later stood by until the Mersea Lifeboat arrived). The way time elapsed was quite sobering. We motored hard out of Salcott Creek and by the time we got to the Quarters, Millie had grounded. But assume she hadn't, she would have sunk and the owner (single handed) would have been in the water. Winter's Bride was obviously much closer but it was a lumpy day and suppose the radio had gone the way of the GPS after the first 'off Bradwell' message, we might have been looking over the Bradwell side of the river. Against the ebb it would have taken us ten minutes to get up to the casualty which was grounded not far from the old Crab and Winkle pier.

Anyway as it happened, the Lifeboat zoomed past:



and was with the casualty which by this time had Winter's Bride standing by.

Image is some way off on max zoom I'm afraid

[URL=http://s217.photobucket.com/user/rgaspar_album/media/P1030285.jpg.html]

One of the lifeboat crew has waded to the casualty and the owner is on the deck and has dropped the sails.

Didn't see the detail but I assume the lifeboat returned with a pump and managed to keep Millie afloat and take her round to West Mersea where Peter Clarke's Boatyard slipped her.

[URL=http://s217.photobucket.com/user/rgaspar_album/media/Closeup1.jpg.html]

[URL=http://s217.photobucket.com/user/rgaspar_album/media/P1030294.jpg.html]

Pretty frightening for the owner I would think and just shows what can happen on a sunny if breezy Saturday when all ought to be all right. Got Essex Lad and I talking about the practicalities - these things are to learn from. Neither of us bothered with lifejackets that day. Had TG started to take on water, would we have had time to go below to get them and get them on. Better chance with two of us on board I guess that alone. And then the positioning of the strum box - or should I say strum boxes. I have one electric bilge pump that sucks just in front of the engine and a big hand pump that sucks from under the engine. Suppose TG is holed at the bows and the bows start sinking first as happened to Millie. Things would have to be pretty extreme before the pump in front of the engine would get to work. I think I might do something about that; I would want to start pumping asap.

Anyway a good result in that no one lost their life and the boat is recovered intact if a little worse for wear.
 
Pleased all worked out, i saw her earlier in the season
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Yep, really good news that all ended well.

After unwittingly allowing a couple of hundred gallons of Essex muddy water into Full Circle and watching the standard manufacturer fitted bilge pump work, I realised it was time to act.
After 30 mins of operation, it had moved barely 2 inches of the water in the saloon.

I now have the standard manufacturer Whale, 2 x 3000Gph fitted to port and starboard, a little 1500Gph under the engine. Also, a LOUD ALARM system, and chucked off the useless moving float switches in favour of non-moving switches.
You can get quite a lot of water into a boat before you realise it is coming in, affecting the performance and progress - by which time you have lost quite a lot of time when you could be stuffing towels and cushions into holes.
 
Winter's Bride headed off towards the casualty as fast as we could but we were motoring out of West Mersea so we had to clear the Quarters Spit, and as it was low-ish tide we had to go a fair way out before we could turn up river. Motoring against the ebb, by the time we arrived on scene the lifeboat overtook us. I suppose the only contribution that we made was that, through binoculars, we saw where the casualty vessel was on the Tollesbury shore and so were able to give the Coastguard and lifeboat a more accurate position.

Looked at 'Millie' later on Peter Clarke's cradle. She has a hole about 4" square in the bottom chine on the port bow. Perhaps she simply hit something. The ply might possibly have had a small rotten place in it and have become weakened.
 
Agree.

I shall review my kit this winter but thinking about how I would get water out from the bow area without putting a hole in the bulkhead is going to be interesting.
 
TimfromMersea said:
Winter's Bride headed off towards the casualty as fast as we could but we were motoring out of West Mersea so we had to clear the Quarters Spit, and as it was low-ish tide we had to go a fair way out before we could turn up river. Motoring against the ebb, by the time we arrived on scene the lifeboat overtook us. I suppose the only contribution that we made was that, through binoculars, we saw where the casualty vessel was on the Tollesbury shore and so were able to give the Coastguard and lifeboat a more accurate position.

Looked at 'Millie' later on Peter Clarke's cradle. She has a hole about 4" square in the bottom chine on the port bow. Perhaps she simply hit something. The ply might possibly have had a small rotten place in it and have become weakened.
Click to expand...

Didn't realise that was you Tim. Saw you passing the Quarters Spit as we were half way out of Salcott and therefore throttled back a bit. I wondered given his position whether he had hit an old piece of the Crab and Winkle pier. There is some debris on the seabed around there.
 
tillergirl said:
Agree.

I shall review my kit this winter but thinking about how I would get water out from the bow area without putting a hole in the bulkhead is going to be interesting.
Click to expand...

Could you not have a through bulkhead spigot fitting with a flange so you can screw attach?, a bit higher up (as the head will draw up the water, and act as anti syphon).

Besides, having had a depth transducer ring break in the Irish Sea on a Bolero, the water soon rises above the cabin door step area. We used an oar and a sleeping bag to wedge/seal it. Also, great cure for sea sickness, frightened man with a bucket.
 
Millie was my old boat. Apparently there is a large hole aft of the forward bulkhead, skeg snapped off during the running ashore and the rudder is bent. 2" of mud inside :(

Rob, the owner is determined to repair and get her back into the water. I wish him well.

Very sobering when its a boat you know or have owned.....

Regards

Ian
 
Umm. That's a fair bit of damage/aggro. I can imagine with that being a lee shore in 18 to 20 knots of wind that it was a fair old clump on the skeg/rudder going ashore. Surprised at the amount of mud inside though. And everything doused in salt water below as well. Not nice. I wish him well as well. Does he have any idea what he hit?
 
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