where do all these "lucky" people come from?

[erice 732]

The first trip aboard a new boat turned to disaster for a couple who were plucked from the vessel by Coastguard in 40 knot winds and a 3m swell off Whangarei Heads.

 

Rescuers made a split-second decision to offload the pair from their 7m wooden launch, because towing it would have endangered their lives and those of the man and woman.

 

The unnamed launch was last seen drifting out to sea, and now poses a shipping hazard off Northland's coast.

 

The Northland Regional Council has issued navigational warnings to vessels in the area.

 

The pair had set out from Onerahi boat ramp early on Saturday morning and had a cellphone with them, but no VHF radio.

 

Whangarei Coastguard volunteer president Brian Whimp said they were notified of an urgent callout after the vessel's engine failed about 8pm on Saturday.

 

The coastguard vessel Circa Rescue was launched from Marsden Cove in rough conditions.

 

The couple were rescued but it was too unsafe to tow their boat.

"I think the lady, she was pretty keen to get off ...

 

"The man was pretty unimpressed when we told him we couldn't tow his boat," Mr Whimp said.

 

 

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/northern-advocate/news/article.cfm?c_id=1503450&objectid=11454723

 

 

 

[Rats 28]

Mother nature preventing the towing of their launch has a certain amount of irony don't you think.

What idiot thinks its a good idea to test a new boat in 40 knots of breeze and 3 metre swells.

We should just leave them to prove Darwinian theory correct and thin the herd. 

Chile is just a few weeks away- did you pack enough crackers honey?

[Kevin McCready 83]

Time for boat licences to make the sea safer and cheaper for all. This is just ignorance. I'm not going to sling off at ignorance, but when it affects the price of my coastguard membership and puts other people and boats at risk the question needs to be asked: what's cheaper and better, simple boat licences or repeated events like this?