Orca attack

Bristolfashion said:
OK, who's the agitated one - you, who want to "burst" orcas or me, my own thoughts being broadly in line with just about everyone else on the matter. All the legal positions and relevant groups being on the same side as me does lead to an almost zen-like calm.

And, ah, so you're NOT campaigning or advocating in any meaningful way, just sounding off about "bursting" orcas on a forum. Pretty pointless eh?

You do realise that you're the one in a tiny minority on the issue don't you? Me, I'm mister mainstream.
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Today 11am, Ria Arousa. Attack. Boat lost 1/3 of rudder.
Second attack at 1607 hrs. In Ria Arousa. Again lost part of rudder.
BDRI research vessel now confirm sighting of 7 orcas in the Ria Arousa area. Sighting was at 1500 hrs today. near Pontevidra Gallicia. Close to Isle Salvoura.
 
I wonder what the odds are on an unsuccessful transit and of 'getting got' by the Orcas.

There have been a fair few attacks - but there must also be quite a lot of traffic and plenty of local cruising as well.

Is it up there with a dart through the Red Sea? Nearly all of the limited amount of yachts who go that way get through (although with a permanent twitch after..)

So, what are the odds of an Orca hit? 1 in 500 perhaps?
 
obmij said:
I wonder what the odds are on an unsuccessful transit and of 'getting got' by the Orcas.

There have been a fair few attacks - but there must also be quite a lot of traffic and plenty of local cruising as well.

Is it up there with a dart through the Red Sea? Nearly all of the limited amount of yachts who go that way get through (although with a permanent twitch after..)

So, what are the odds of an Orca hit? 1 in 500 perhaps?
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More like one in many tens of thousands except maybe for Cape Trafalgar at certain times.
 
Graham376 said:
More like one in many tens of thousands except maybe for Cape Trafalgar at certain times.
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The majority of boats passing Portimao are staying relatively shallow. Maybe not 20metres but not much more than that. This is definitely reducing the number of casualties now. Not so many broken rudders in the boatyard now.
 
greeny said:
The majority of boats passing Portimao are staying relatively shallow. Maybe not 20metres but not much more than that. This is definitely reducing the number of casualties now. Not so many broken rudders in the boatyard now.
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We had a five hour sail last week from Faro to the Guadiana and stayed inshore of the nets but, surprisingly saw maybe 10-12 on the outside in around 30m.
 
Bristolfashion said:
Awful.
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I am sorry, but you appear to have no idea what you are talking about. Thousands of yachts, both resident and on passage, are affected. People have had their (floating) homes destroyed, dreams rudely interrupted and five yachts have been sunk. It is only a matter of time before someone dies.

An effective exclusion zone would close the Straits of Gibraltar and stop all yacht traffic in and out of the Med.

If orcas are as intelligent as people say they won't go anywhere near spiky rudders. And if they do they will only do it once. This is a learned behavior, and we need to help the orcas unlearn it as soon as possible.


- W
 
webcraft said:
I am sorry, but you appear to have no idea what you are talking about. Thousands of yachts, both resident and on passage, are affected. People have had their (floating) homes destroyed, dreams rudely interrupted and five yachts have been sunk. It is only a matter of time before someone dies.

An effective exclusion zone would close the Straits of Gibraltar and stop all yacht traffic in and out of the Med.

If orcas are as intelligent as people say they won't go anywhere near spiky rudders. And if they do they will only do it once. This is a learned behavior, and we need to help the orcas unlearn it as soon as possible.


- W
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Hmm, since action of this type is illegal within the jurisdictions affected, I'd say you have no idea what you're talking about.

Research into solutions that will actually solve the problem is one thing - a bunch of amateurs welding/affixing medieval looking weapons to their rudders is another. And, of course, you have no way of knowing whether this will injure orcas and/or provoke other, possibly worse, actions.

Agitate for & fund urgent research & then take appropriate actions, but all this amateur hour stuff is pathetic.

Sadly, I'm guessing that the direct cause of the first death / serious injury will be an accident with one of these poorly considered anti-orca lash ups.
 
Bristolfashion said:
Hmm, since action of this type is illegal within the jurisdictions affected, I'd say you have no idea what you're talking about.

Research into solutions that will actually solve the problem is one thing - a bunch of amateurs welding/affixing medieval looking weapons to their rudders is another. And, of course, you have no way of knowing whether this will injure orcas and/or provoke other, possibly worse, actions.

Agitate for & fund urgent research & then take appropriate actions, but all this amateur hour stuff is pathetic.

Sadly, I'm guessing that the direct cause of the first death / serious injury will be an accident with one of these poorly considered anti-orca lash ups.
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How can it be illegal until it is shown to have harmed an Orca?
 
Fr J Hackett said:
How can it be illegal until it is shown to have harmed an Orca?
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Er, I said "action" not "equipment".

I'm not sure how it would go if someone in the water were injured by these ill considered bodge ups. Altering a vessel such that it became significantly more likely to cause injury sounds a bad idea.

It would be a touch ironic if someone managed to sink their own tender with one of these things.

Having looked at a couple of these amateur jobs, they may well fall off anyway before getting anywhere near an orca.

It is slightly odd that yachts are damaged or sunk every year by shipping containers - and people have been killed - no protest or outcry here.
 
I'm not expert in all the relevant codes & requirements, but if one makes alterations of the type previously shown, I'd guess that, at the very least, one would need to advise one's insurers?

If the boat is "in survey" (as we call a boat constructed & certified to commercial standards in Oz), would it need recertifying? Does some form of certification apply to boats above a certain size whatever the usage?

Do other jurisdictions have rules around departing from an approved / certified design?

It would be unfortunate to have a successful passage, lose or damage the boat (or another vessel / person) due to an entirely orca-unrelated incident and have an insurance claim rejected for an unapproved modification. At worst, I guess, one could, in certain circumstances, face some form of prosecution?
 
webcraft said:
I am sorry, but you appear to have no idea what you are talking about. Thousands of yachts, both resident and on passage, are affected. People have had their (floating) homes destroyed, dreams rudely interrupted and five yachts have been sunk. It is only a matter of time before someone dies.

An effective exclusion zone would close the Straits of Gibraltar and stop all yacht traffic in and out of the Med.

If orcas are as intelligent as people say they won't go anywhere near spiky rudders. And if they do they will only do it once. This is a learned behavior, and we need to help the orcas unlearn it as soon as possible.


- W
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What is the word on the street about using fireworks at the moment, effective?


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