Hindsight re Loss of Bar Pilot: Worth reading...

PhoebusGroup · 04-06-2006, 08:57 AM

Bar Pilot Article in the Daily Astorian

There was more going wrong than I realized...

jacksalmon · 04-06-2006, 10:11 AM

Thanks for the link, it was very interesting and informative reading.

MarshBum · 04-06-2006, 10:17 AM

I want to know which inflatable life jacket he was wearing (brand). I've read several instances of CO2 cartridges not being seated properly.

MarshBum

edsr · 04-06-2006, 10:58 AM

What a bummer. Those guys have a dangerous job made worse in bad weather.

Don't mean to hijack this thread but thought you might be interested. On Sunday of the convention the coast guard demonstrated a number of flotation devices in the Newport Pool. Many people brought their own PFDs to test also. It was a great opportunity to see how things worked and to try throwing a rope to a MOB, in addition to the PFD testing.

From the newspaper details about a night rescue, my next purchase will be lights on all of my PDFs.

BTW - during the pool tests the self-inflating jackets did activate in just a few seconds and did right a person who had purposely fallen in to face downward.

kamloops · 04-06-2006, 11:09 AM

Learn from the tragety, not sure the Bar Pilots or the family need the peanut gallery questioning their competence.

skein · 04-06-2006, 11:53 AM

One of the rituals on my boat is to not only hand out the inflatables, but to have everyone check to make sure the cartridge is screwed all the way in.

Skein

PhoebusGroup · 04-06-2006, 08:08 PM

Interesting. Placing a high priority on
strobe lights suggests you operate often
in the dark. Is that true?

I don't. Perhaps I am a 'fraidy cat, but
I will depart late to miss a CR max ebb
rather than in the dark. For salmon.

I suppose longer journeys for tuna and halibut
preclude this option. And that's where I am
heading - to seek other more distant species.

Thanks for the interesting reply.

And I like this concept of 'hijacking a thread.'
Works for me. Broadens my thinking.

Kind regards to all,

PhoebusGroup · 04-06-2006, 08:18 PM

Kamloops,

If I understand your post correctly, I
agree. The family doesn't need any
more sadness, to be sure.

What worries me is the safety nets that don't
work. We need to understand those problems
and re-engineer. First responders that direct
rescue to the wrong location are not in our
best interest.

The MMSI threads are so distressing. I have
very intelligent friends who think that if
they press the red button, help will emerge.
Isn't that a terrifying assumption?

And, I guess it's in the reading, but I thought
the Daily Astoria article was not disparaging of
Bar Pilot procedures. They do this all the time
successfully.

In another thread on an accident, a Salty Dog
talked about the "Perfect Storm" that comes together
to cause these problems. It's not just the seas,
the dark, the equipment, or the constellation of
players, it's the combination of all that fails.

In any case, best wishes to all that we remain safe
on the water and return safely to port every time.
Which we won't...

Kind regards,

edsr · 04-06-2006, 09:08 PM

I hope no one interprets my post as a critism in any way of the lost bar pilot. If I offended anyone I apologize. My intent was, is only to alert people that there are opportunities to practice and prepare before an emergency.

PG - The sun can go down awfully fast. The cost of a small light isn't much, wish I could afford an epirb for every vest.

edsr

Mark Mc · 04-06-2006, 09:17 PM

Ya...OK I have in my hand (still in original package) an ACR "C-light" (not strobe) that attaches to a vest or jacket. You simply rotate it to turn on. The price tag says $8.95 , from the store that starts with an 'E'.

kamloops · 04-07-2006, 05:42 AM

You guys misunderstood my post. These pilots are hand picked from among the most seasoned and qualified mariners.
The article was very informative and well written.
I guess my point was that this group has earned the right
to mourn the loss of life and fix what needs fixing.
These mariners have forgotten more knowledge than all of us put together.

skein · 04-07-2006, 06:53 AM

One thing that I picked up for sure, and that's when another boat is having an emergency, it's important for me to stay off the airwaves. I need to listen and be prepared to help, but I need to stay away from the mic.

Another thing is to be very careful about "relaying" information. Make it clear it is not YOUR BOAT with the emergency. That may be even more important when everyone is sporting DSC-capable radios and the guys with the real emergency are "over the horizon."

These posts and discussions are extremely valuable, and in some ways a tribute to those who were lost, in that they show us how badly (and quickly) things can go wrong.

Skein

coconutdan · 04-07-2006, 08:17 AM

Mark spend the extra 15 bucks and buy the strobe it saved one of my friends life in the Bering Sea. The skipper that pulled them out of the water said if one of the guys hadn't been wearing a strobe he never would have seen them that night, the other lights are good for a couple hundred yards.

Hammer Down · 04-10-2006, 07:06 AM

Phoebus...

No offense at all. Topics like this need to be discussed, as learning tools. My .02.

A couple of weeks ago as I held the sofa down from floating away, I was watching a coast guard rescue show on the discovery channel. The show mainly focused on their open sea rescue tactics and how they practice for them.

This particular show was filmed off the coast in florida. You know the waves too, where 2 & 3 is considered rough. Nothing like what we experience out here.

So the coasties toss a fellow over board dressed in a standard survival suit and call the helicopter for visual location/find and retrieval. (This is the eye opener part). This guy was less than 80 yards from the helicopter, and damned if anyone could even see him. Calm day, waves were 2 & 3, bright red suit....nothing, nada. He was virtually invisible. It took the copter about 8 minutes to locate him and initiate rescue. They then took another volunteer and re-inacted the same scenario, but had him outfitted with a strobe. Instantly the helicopter found him. In fact you could see him literally a half mile away.

I immediately added a strobe light to my wish list for this summer. A good strobe is not cheap, (about 75.00-90.00) but I'll tell you what. I won't be caught offshore without one after watching that show.

The show was a REAL eye-opener.

blubeast · 04-10-2006, 11:15 AM

Interesting info. Thanks for posting. To reinforce the comment Skein made, periodically checking your safety equipment is critical.

Last spring I got a strobe for emergency use. When I put it on my boat in the spring, it worked great... when I checked it in the fall.. it did NOT! :blush: no, not the batteries..

So, hereafter, I'll be checking it both frequently & often.