YM April - Question of Seamanship

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dunedin

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So this edition of Yachting Monthly they chose to do A Question of Seamanship article about a fictional scenario based upon
........ a Beneteau First 40.7 with serious water ingress, which seems to be coming from around the keel area. "Its pretty serious - if the yacht sinks" etc.

Odd timing, but I couldn't possibly comment.
 
Greetings,
I presume the response/experts' advice in the mag is a distress message, then try and stop the leak?
 
It's very unlikely that the water in a leaking 40.7 will 'seem to be coming from the keel area'.
It will either clearly be coming from a keel bolt, or mysteriously appear under the settees.
 
lw395 said:
It's very unlikely that the water in a leaking 40.7 will 'seem to be coming from the keel area'.
It will either clearly be coming from a keel bolt, or mysteriously appear under the settees.
Click to expand...

Or slosh around the bilges with no easily identifiable source.

Stiil, it does seem in rather poor taste from YM.
 
awol said:
So what was their solution?
Click to expand...

Perhaps some other replies are starting to stray over some yellow lines so back to YM content ......

The YM “solution” one was using the engine inlet pipe to pump water out (fair do’s, one handy suggestion), but then solution two was to grab objects that might float when the ship goes down, to await the lifeboat arriving ! Not too encouraging :ambivalence:
The QoS has changed a bit over the previous one!
 
dunedin said:
Perhaps some other replies are starting to stray over some yellow lines so back to YM content ......

The YM “solution” one was using the engine inlet pipe to pump water out (fair do’s, one handy suggestion), but then solution two was to grab objects that might float when the ship goes down, to await the lifeboat arriving ! Not too encouraging :ambivalence:
The QoS has changed a bit over the previous one!
Click to expand...

It would take ten days to pump out all the water using that method.
 
Funny they would particularly specify a 40.7 Benetau. At the same time as the heading requesting no comments due to the current court case.
Since I couldn’t comment on a the particular boat.

My answer to the question of seamanship on any average production sailing vessel including my own.
To an unknown leak. Offshore
1st call for help
2nd call for help
3rd call for help

Take your pick Pan Pan position,name call ,sign vessel taking on water. Source is of leak unknowns. Currently under control
Course heading for nearest safe port.

Or even a full May Day
Start pumping of course. Power and manual bilge pumps.

In my opinion. Get the call out while you can as first priority. If situation gets worse you may not be able to.
Sure still look for the leak check all through hulls. Then check them again.
Question do you actually know where. All the through hulls are.
If it’s not a through hull it must be a new hole in the boat. Structure or damage?
Start pulling stuff out and if nessessary apart.

Getting a life raft or dingy ready for deployment. Life jackets extra clothing. Dry suit or exposure suits if you have them if you don’t weather gear.

If you start to suspect keep bolts.
You might want to consider reducing sail. Of course this means reducing speed. Or even turning down wind away from safety.
A Hard choice to make.
Keep sailing as quickly as you can towards safety against the possibility of further damage and catastrophic failure.

I am not sure I would make the right choices. I always feel like I can handle it.

I have turned around for a vessel taking on water. It right up thier on the priory list.
I would far rather turn up and to stand by and escort or even wait for salvage pump equipment to arrive.
Than show up to an upturned boat and not be a able to do anything.
Or have to search for persons in the water.
 
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Something I've been wondering about recently. Does anybody carry an emergency bilge pump? I have 16 amp 12V sockets handy or I could use crocodile clips onto a battery if it gave more power. How big a pump could I run on that sort of supply? - With engine running to recharge batteries.
 
dom said:
Oops YM, this matter is sub-judice !!!
Click to expand...

By my reading it's not (assuming the QoS is exactly as the OP describes). But it is dangerously close to inviting comment on matters which are sub judice. Any slip-up (on here, for instance) which allows such comments to be published might be seen as contempt (of a particularly brazen type, given the wide awareness of the legal proceedings). Such contempt would be on the part of ybw.com and the specific author....so, take care.

The practical issues are of legitimate concern for all of us, but why, oh why, did they pick that particular boat for their scenario when scores of others would do just as well? Daft.

On the other hand, perhaps it's been lawyered by wiser heads than mine...
 
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Uricanejack said:
Funny they would particularly specify a 40.7 Benetau. At the same time as the heading requesting no comments due to the current court case.
Since I couldn’t comment on a the particular boat.

My answer to the question of seamanship on any average production sailing vessel including my own.
To an unknown leak. Offshore
1st call for help
2nd call for help
3rd call for help

Take your pick Pan Pan position,name call ,sign vessel taking on water. Source is of leak unknowns. Currently under control
Course heading for nearest safe port.

Or even a full May Day
Start pumping of course. Power and manual bilge pumps.

In my opinion. Get the call out while you can as first priority. If situation gets worse you may not be able to.
Sure still look for the leak check all through hulls. Then check them again.
Question do you actually know where. All the through hulls are.
If it’s not a through hull it must be a new hole in the boat. Structure or damage?
Start pulling stuff out and if nessessary apart.

Getting a life raft or dingy ready for deployment. Life jackets extra clothing. Dry suit or exposure suits if you have them if you don’t weather gear.

If you start to suspect keep bolts.
You might want to consider reducing sail. Of course this means reducing speed. Or even turning down wind away from safety.
A Hard choice to make.
Keep sailing as quickly as you can towards safety against the possibility of further damage and catastrophic failure.

I am not sure I would make the right choices. I always feel like I can handle it.

I have turned around for a vessel taking on water. It right up thier on the priory list.
I would far rather turn up and to stand by and escort or even wait for salvage pump equipment to arrive.
Than show up to an upturned boat and not be a able to do anything.
Or have to search for persons in the water.
Click to expand...

"May Day"?
Are the crew expecting Morris Dancing or Maypole rescue?;)
 
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