Tagged: sinking

Float Plans

Stuart Bee, from Port Canaveral, FL, recently made news when he was found clinging to bow pulpit of his 32 Sea Ray about 86 miles from land. Stuart encountered engine problems soon after leaving port on a Friday afternoon, which escalated into a sinking situation, by Saturday night. Fortunately, an alert marina member reported his absence on Saturday morning, setting in motion a host of search and rescue activities, led by the USCG. A 225-foot container ship, Angeles, spotted Bee clinging to his boat and rescued him, unharmed. This real-life story illustrates the importance of float plans, or, at the [...]

December 3rd, 2020|

Cats & Dogs

Years ago, when it rained really hard, people would say,” It’s raining cats and dogs”. It was a somewhat comical image to ponder, but, as with most time-proven expressions, it also carried an important message relating to the volume of the rainfall. A couple days ago, a passing thunderstorm dumped some heavy rain, probably 2-3”, within a few hours. The effect on the dinghies at the dock was immediately noticeable as many of them filled with water to the seats. The effect on the larger boats was more important, but less immediately recognizable. You see, many boats are designed to [...]

July 25th, 2020|

Avoiding the “Up Periscope” Command

It’s early in the season, and while many boats have been launched, a large number of them are not being used much due to chilly breezes and cold water temperatures. While most people would not consider this to be a dangerous situation, it really is, particularly to the welfare of the boats. Industry statistics indicate that four times as many boats sink at the dock than underway. There are a variety of reasons for this, but the primary ones are underwater fitting failures and rain/snow. Fitting failures are relatively clear; a fitting designed to keep water out fails, and provides [...]

June 4th, 2015|

Smart Boating 21 – Salvage

This show focuses on the differences between salvage and towing situations, and the factors to consider when taking action to avoid potentially costly mistakes.

June 19th, 2007|

Smart Boating 20 – Towing

This show illuminates some key differences between towing and salvage situations and the factors to consider when taking action to avoid potentially costly mistakes.

June 5th, 2007|