kcrane
Well-Known Member
SWMBO and I were off the Plymouth breakwater in the 8m Rodman when we heard a pan pan on VHF16 - the message was that they'd lost power off Cawsand (and east facing bay in Plymouth Sound) with 6 aboard, including some kids. We waited a couple of minutes to see what the Coastguard would say, but there was no reply. We then replied to the casualty and could hear them loud and clear - they could obviously hear us too. The wind was in east with a 2ft swell, not that comfortable, and they were drifting onto the rocks in-between two beaches. We asked if they like help, they said yes, and so off we went. We had stayed on VHF16 during the discussion and assuming we would have been overheard by the Coastguard I half expected to be stood down in favour of the inshore - or asked to relay messages - but radio silence.
When we got there they were up against the rocks, but were getting the kids off the bow, leaving two adult men to their waists trying to hold the boat (a 18ft Larson) off from banging up and down, which was going to cause it quite some damage.
The water was too shallow and the rocks too close, plus the swell, for me to get close, but with a big effort and clearly tired they paddled it far enough out for us to get alongside and try to tow them out into deeper water. So far so good, until lack of experience with this type of thing started to make itself known.
The swell was moving the boats differently, and it despite all the fenders SWMBO had put over, they were popping up and threatening to leave us banging together. Also, the swell was pushing us back in to the rocks, now two boats attached to each other. I then discovered that there was no way two tiny props and twin 160hp was going to move us against the swell at idle, so I needed to rev the engines, which put a strain on the lines and cleats and on my nerves. We got out a bit, but not with any elegance or that much control.
So I shouted that we'd have to let them go, or we would both end up in trouble. In return they asked if we could try a tow astern, left to drift they'd be back on the rocks. It seemed worth a try, and SWMBO did a sterling job of getting their bow line and dropping them back... but we had the dinghy on the bathing platform and the most she could do was tie them to a stern quarter before the strain came back on.
Again, it didn't work. We weren't using a long line, they were only maybe 15ft behind us, and of course while waiting to be able to manoeuvre, we drifted back, but in our lee, they didn't and the boats started to come close. Thinking I couldn't gun the engines for risk of breaking something, I put on more power slowly but their drag off one quarter made us crab sideways more than head out to sea, but we got 100m further over and off a beach rather than rocks.
Thinking that was the best I could do, I slowed and shouted back that they'd have to beach it, only to find that the Rodman stopped, but the Larson didn't and it ran into our stern quarter despite the best efforts of their crew to fend off. Panic stations, lots of shouting "Go forward, go forward" - so I did. Mistake. The loose line went round out port prop, Damn. Fortunately there was a very sharp fishing knife to hand, and we cut the line from the cleat to the prop and from their bow to the prop and off they drifted. My immediate worry was that we now had one engine, just off a lee shore with rocks, but fortunately the rope-cutters did their job and both engines worked, though with a "rat rat rat" noise (loose rope end spinning and hitting the hull I thought).
Once a safe distance off I idled the port engine and set off to limp back to the lift at QAB to check the damage. I radioed the Larson to check they were OK and they were, they were beached in a bit of surf, but the tide was on its way out and they were soon completely aground.
Lots of lessons I guess. I thought to radio the Coastguard myself, but delayed it until we could see what was happening, by then the urge to help got in the way of think more clearly. They'd sensibly carried the kids off, so the only danger was now to property, so I could have just left them and said I couldn't risk my boat when no lives were in danger. I should have guessed the swell would make an alongside tow too difficult. But I hadn't ever had a discussion with SWMBO about bridles and tow lines needing to be long and attached at multiple points - so shouting back "Set a bridle to both stern quarters and attached a long tow line to the centre of it" would have got me some swear words.
Rodman is now blocked off at QAB waiting checks and repairs. There are some minor scratches and one tennis ball sized dent in the GRP, plus the port shaft looks to be 1cm too far back (maybe). Co-incidentally the Larson owner keeps it at QAB and late in the afternoon turned up back having been towed home by a big RIB once things calmed down. Turned out he had been using a handheld to call for help and wondered if we could hear him (a couple of miles away but line of sight) when Coastguard couldn't.
Not sure whether to think we did the wrong thing or not, but certainly proud of SWMBO, who did a calm and quick job with directing operations, while handling lines & fenders.
When we got there they were up against the rocks, but were getting the kids off the bow, leaving two adult men to their waists trying to hold the boat (a 18ft Larson) off from banging up and down, which was going to cause it quite some damage.
The water was too shallow and the rocks too close, plus the swell, for me to get close, but with a big effort and clearly tired they paddled it far enough out for us to get alongside and try to tow them out into deeper water. So far so good, until lack of experience with this type of thing started to make itself known.
The swell was moving the boats differently, and it despite all the fenders SWMBO had put over, they were popping up and threatening to leave us banging together. Also, the swell was pushing us back in to the rocks, now two boats attached to each other. I then discovered that there was no way two tiny props and twin 160hp was going to move us against the swell at idle, so I needed to rev the engines, which put a strain on the lines and cleats and on my nerves. We got out a bit, but not with any elegance or that much control.
So I shouted that we'd have to let them go, or we would both end up in trouble. In return they asked if we could try a tow astern, left to drift they'd be back on the rocks. It seemed worth a try, and SWMBO did a sterling job of getting their bow line and dropping them back... but we had the dinghy on the bathing platform and the most she could do was tie them to a stern quarter before the strain came back on.
Again, it didn't work. We weren't using a long line, they were only maybe 15ft behind us, and of course while waiting to be able to manoeuvre, we drifted back, but in our lee, they didn't and the boats started to come close. Thinking I couldn't gun the engines for risk of breaking something, I put on more power slowly but their drag off one quarter made us crab sideways more than head out to sea, but we got 100m further over and off a beach rather than rocks.
Thinking that was the best I could do, I slowed and shouted back that they'd have to beach it, only to find that the Rodman stopped, but the Larson didn't and it ran into our stern quarter despite the best efforts of their crew to fend off. Panic stations, lots of shouting "Go forward, go forward" - so I did. Mistake. The loose line went round out port prop, Damn. Fortunately there was a very sharp fishing knife to hand, and we cut the line from the cleat to the prop and from their bow to the prop and off they drifted. My immediate worry was that we now had one engine, just off a lee shore with rocks, but fortunately the rope-cutters did their job and both engines worked, though with a "rat rat rat" noise (loose rope end spinning and hitting the hull I thought).
Once a safe distance off I idled the port engine and set off to limp back to the lift at QAB to check the damage. I radioed the Larson to check they were OK and they were, they were beached in a bit of surf, but the tide was on its way out and they were soon completely aground.
Lots of lessons I guess. I thought to radio the Coastguard myself, but delayed it until we could see what was happening, by then the urge to help got in the way of think more clearly. They'd sensibly carried the kids off, so the only danger was now to property, so I could have just left them and said I couldn't risk my boat when no lives were in danger. I should have guessed the swell would make an alongside tow too difficult. But I hadn't ever had a discussion with SWMBO about bridles and tow lines needing to be long and attached at multiple points - so shouting back "Set a bridle to both stern quarters and attached a long tow line to the centre of it" would have got me some swear words.
Rodman is now blocked off at QAB waiting checks and repairs. There are some minor scratches and one tennis ball sized dent in the GRP, plus the port shaft looks to be 1cm too far back (maybe). Co-incidentally the Larson owner keeps it at QAB and late in the afternoon turned up back having been towed home by a big RIB once things calmed down. Turned out he had been using a handheld to call for help and wondered if we could hear him (a couple of miles away but line of sight) when Coastguard couldn't.
Not sure whether to think we did the wrong thing or not, but certainly proud of SWMBO, who did a calm and quick job with directing operations, while handling lines & fenders.
