GrahamW 8 Posted October 22, 2013 Share Posted October 22, 2013 http://i.stuff.co.nz/national/9311915/O ... ve-two-men So what is the answer? Link to post Share on other sites
Murky 1 Posted October 22, 2013 Share Posted October 22, 2013 Strikes me as quite reasoned - both the article and the coroner's comments do say a lot more (and with equal emphasis as I read it) about multiple contributing factors. Personally I would not (and did not) read that article and arrive at the conclusion that it was all about the lifejacket. Given that the two men had remained afloat for a number of hours and the victim was still alive when searchers reportedly came within 800-1000m...I just can't see how you got to that view, to be honest. At that point a torch, a flare or a PLB would have been the item that got them home alive. Link to post Share on other sites
banaari 27 Posted October 22, 2013 Share Posted October 22, 2013 So what is the answer? WEAR the damned thing, don't just carry it. (In any situation where you wouldn't be able to conveniently swim to shore. I am NOT referring to the situation in the tender out to the mooring...) And a wake-up call: Maybe think about relocating flares and other good stuff to somewhere you don't have to dive into a submerging cabin to retrieve. Link to post Share on other sites
Fish 0 Posted October 22, 2013 Share Posted October 22, 2013 I'm constantly amazed at how thick these coroners are. Why don't they just say you shouldn't go to sea in a leaky boat? So lets look at the root cause of the fatality - the boat sunk. Perhaps they didn't put the bung in? I recommend making sure your boat doesn't sink, duh! Said it before, focusing on life jackets will only ever exacerbate the problems as it educates people to not worry about boat maintenance, forecasts, loading or seamanship, as all you need is a magic cloak of a life jacket. Link to post Share on other sites
Brendon 0 Posted October 22, 2013 Share Posted October 22, 2013 Like all tragic accidents there are multiple causes that add up to the final result. The lack of a second life jacket contributed but many other things could have saved the day, such as a good waterproof torch, flares, waterproof vhf, EPIRB etc. To speculate on the cause, - The article mentions that they were trying out new engines, so I would guess that the leak would be related to that work, a through hull, or prop shaft gland??? Things can go wrong very quickly at sea, and having life-jackets and other safety equipment in the cabin may put them out of reach. Four years ago I capsized a boat with my family on board, we all got life-jackets and put them on quickly but the radio was instantly out of action and the flares were out of reach in the submerged cabin. So I now recommend having life-jackets, flares and a portable vhf in the cockpit. And I now have an EPIRB mounted in easy reach. (In my case we were seen and picked up by another boat within 10 minutes). Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Posted October 22, 2013 Share Posted October 22, 2013 I guess if not wearing lifejackets then at least have them topsides so they can be found floating! I don't like wearing the damn things. I put my hand on the pull cord when getting up and the damn thing gave me the fright of my life. And I was not impressed by the quality of the gas chamber bladder thingo. Seems rather flimsy. I think they are a danger to life if you are below. I reckon a lifejacket would float two men , no worries. Link to post Share on other sites
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