Sea Check - the promised write-up

Oen

Oen

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Well, following my earlier gripes about trying to organise a Sea Check, I'm pleased to say that it went ahead recently.

Very charming chap came to the boat, had a look around, inspected various bits of kit, chatted through this and that, and gave some worthwhile advice.

Notwhithstanding the fact that I have taken pains to equip the boat very well, both for comfort and safety, I was pleased that the boat emerged unscathed other than...

A suggestion that retro-reflective strips should be fitted to the horseshoes, to supplement the floating lights and dan-buoy (easily done with adhesive patches, though expensive - and it's a shame they don't come with such patches already on), and...

A black mark for not carrying rigging cutters - my excuse being that with heavy-ish rod rigging, hydraulic or cartridge-powered cutters are the only option, and are too expensive to make them worthwhile (the same amount could be bettter spent on other things).

A very worthwhile excercise, so a vote of thanks to the Sea Checkers everywhere...

I popped a contribution into the next 'Lifeboats' box that I met on my travels.
 
I have had 2 done over the years and will possibly have another this year. I like the idea of an independant view of my boat at very little cost ! Having saved money, I am considering a condition and valuation survey later to ensure that I have not missed other vital bits.
 
You must tell me the secret. I tried to organise a check last year, but despite a number of calls to head office I never heard a thing. As you can imagine I wasn't overly impressed.
 
Aaah, I had (quite truthfully) months of those problems. When I went public about them here, I promised the RNLI that I would do a nice write-up - and that's what you see above. I was assured that 'difficulties' were being dealt with.

As a regular contributor to the RNLI's finds (Governor) I'm very disappointed that (a) the organisation hasn't, it seems, sorted this out, and, worse, (b) there's a possibility of lifeboat launches or which don't need to occur, had Sea Checks been done promptly. Therefore, please see new thread...
 
LMcD
As a Sea-checker I can only apologise for what you perceive as a bad service, but at this time the service is undergoing major changes to the organisational structures so that when they are all finally in place the delays experienced should be minimal.

Basically, instead of working as a separate group the RNLI are turning us over to the "operational" side i.e. L/b stations, so in future all checkers will be part of a station.

It takes a lot of time to organise such major changes and the RNLI are working as hard and fast as they can to "get in place" the new structures.

Remember that us "checkers" are ordinary folk that probably have jobs that keep us busy Mon-Fri and on top of that we checkers also want to offer a good first class service and get just as frustrated at the bad comms as you do!

If you continue to get no response, then contact my boss (Peter Chennell) directly at Kremlin HQ in Poole, he's a decent chap, he doesn't bite, and I'm sure he will get things moving!

Peter
SeaChecker!
 
I feel I need to say again, and clearly, that I have enormous respect and gratitude for the folk on the Lifeboats (and the shore crews etc), and for the volunteers who give up their time to do Sea Checks, in exchange for little more than the hope that they, too, are saving lives (which they surely are), and the odd, perhaps slightly ropey, cup of coffee.

I'm disappointed that changes, which I was assured were being put in place months ago, are still, it appears, not being effective.

I'm concerned that the money I put into the RNLI (not huge sums at all, but enough to help, I hope) might be 'wasted' attending a vessel 'in distress' which would have been in no perceived peril, had a Sea Check been carried out.
 
Yes, please contact me...

... for I know there are all sorts of glitches in the system (when backed into a corner, blame the computer) which we are trying to sort out. To give you an idea, some names simply disappeared, and we only learn of it when threads like this start.

If I don't hear from you, I can't sort it out.

Thanks for jumping in, Peter.
 
Re: Yes, please contact me...

Tim, I am amazed that they managed to find fault with Matrix as she is by far the safest and best organised vessel I have been on, which considering I've done most of my sailing either with the Navy or Lloyds is, I hope, saying something!

Interesting point about the shroud cutters though. I guess I could get away with good wire cutters on Merit which I probably have, but at the bottom of a toolbag somewhere, perhaps they ought to be moved to the companion way, next to the knife.

I should think that the RNLI find issues of where to direct admittedly large but finite funds, is a difficult one. Plenty of people will raise money for a new lifeboat but funding for a new admin system just wont have the same appeal. Okay, there is plenty of non designated funding as well but we all wince when we see the NHS appoint admistrators rather than nurses don't we?
 
Oen

[ QUOTE ]
I'm disappointed that changes, which I was assured were being put in place months ago, are still, it appears, not being effective.


[/ QUOTE ]

Those changes are huge and are expected to take a couple of years to put in place, however we are about 15 months into them.

I see that Peter C has turned up on this thread and he is in a much better position than I am to outline them c/w progress - I'm just a grunt where as he's the boss.

We need to spread the word in here that if you have requested a SC and nothing appears to happen then contact Peter C at Poole - He'll sort it out for you.

In fact anyone in the Kent / Essex / Suffolk area can always contact me (PM) as an absolutely last resort and I'll pass the request on to my area boss for sorting.

Peter.
 
Peter (Boatman),

Thanks for that. I had a very useful chat with Peter Chennell on the telephone this morning.

Fingers crossed that the present difficulties will be effectively dealt with. Sea Check is an important weapon in the RNLI's armoury.
 
Benefits?

Who (if anyone) is measurng the benefits of the Sea Check exercise and attempting to put some kind of estimate on reduced number of incidents /rescues / fatalities as a result?

Sounds a great idea in theory but does it really help in practice i.e. does the RNLI ever see a vessel they've rescued and say, with hindsight, that if the owner had been thru a Sea Check that they would not have needed rescuing?

Maybe they do?
 
Re: Benefits?

[ QUOTE ]
does the RNLI ever see a vessel they've rescued and say, with hindsight, that if the owner had been thru a Sea Check that they would not have needed rescuing?

[/ QUOTE ]

From reading the relevant reports and seeing the statistics, the answer would have to be 'very often indeed'. For example, the number of engine problems lifeboats go out to, which should have been resolved on board if the crew had had the correct tools, spares, and skills, seems to be very significant.
 
Re: Benefits?

I'm a member of the local CG - usually if the RNLI tow someone in e.g. with engine failure, then it's us that will have a chat with the folk on board and give that kind of advice after they get ashore. Unless it's a long tow and the lifeboat boys have time to chat along the way, they won't have done it.
I'd certainly suggest Sea Check in the right circumstances. And in my nine years there's never been a yacht with engine failure that I can recall - many many leisure fishermen though, and more than a few professionals too.
 
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