Monday, May 16, 2011

Boating Rescues of Note

This past weekend had more than its share of boating incidents...

U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Tara Molle

Each Monday in the spring and summer we take a look at all the boating incidents from the weekend and share the ones that are unique and interesting, or that can provide a reminder about boating safety.

Once again this morning, unfortunately, the headlines were very busy.

His first helicopter ride
A man and his four-year-old son (pictured) had to be rescued by Coast Guard helicopter on Saturday after their 22 foot sailboat capsized during a storm near Anclote Key, Florida. At least one report said the rescued father stated that the weather "got bad really fast". May we suggest a weather radio before your next voyage, sir?

Rescued and Arrested
Two men were operating an aluminum fishing boat on the Assiniboine River on Saturday evening in Winnipeg when their boat capsized. The Brandson Sun reports that one man is missing and presumed dead, while the other was rescued and then charged with "impaired operation of a vessel causing death and failure to provide breath samples".

4 Rescued; did "everything right"
Four men were rescued off of Cumberland Island (Georgia) after their 25-foot boat capsized on Saturday. The Florida Times-Union reports that the boat capsized 14 miles offshore during an adventure in which the boaters were taking out the boat for the first time. Apparently the boat started taking on water unexpectedly, and then the weather turned ugly, making the situation significantly worse. Did we mention they were shark fishing right before they ended up in the water? Despite the fact that this family was so far offshore on the boat's maiden run, the Coast Guard is praising the boaters for wearing life jackets, placing a mayday call to the Coast Guard, and for having an EPIRB. Luckily all were safely rescued.

Idahoians rescued in Oregon
Fox 12 reports that two men from Idaho were rescued off the coast of Newport, Oregon, on Friday after their 18-foot boat capsized while they were trying to snag a lobster pot in rough seas. Life jackets were donned, and the men were quickly rescued. Neither Fox 12 or any of the other news outlets where we saw this story mentioned anything about theft, so we are assuming the lobster pot the Idaho men were trying to retrieve belonged to them.

No Cell Phone Signal
The Canadian Press is reporting that two fishermen in Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, were rescued after their lobster boat caught fire and sank on Sunday. They were adrift on their life raft for four hours before they were able to get a cell phone signal and call for help.

Check out FirstBoat.com's tips on boating safety, and stay tuned to the Daily Boater for more boating safety and seamanship articles.

3 comments:

  1. Anonymous16 May, 2011

    The weather off Anclote Key deteriorated more severely, and MUCH more rapidly, than NOAA weather broadcasts had led us to expect. I might have articulated that more clearly had I been a little warmer and drier at the time. It would have been a shame, though, to let mere facts deprive you of your opportunity for humor.

    At any rate, Victor still looks great!

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  2. Glad everyone is safe!

    We try to combine real-life news stories with an occasional attempt at humor to try to get as many people as possible to take boating safety seriously.

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  3. Anonymous27 June, 2011

    We used to boat off Bailey's Bluff in Fla and onto Anclote Key in the late 80's long before every one carried a cell phone. Weather changes SO QUICKLY around Anclote Key such that in a mere 20 minutes a nice sunny day can turn ugly; preparation is key & safety a close second. Those new to boating need a "crash course" before heading out into the unknown.........

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