Cruisers Forum
 


Reply
  This discussion is proudly sponsored by:
Please support our sponsors and let them know you heard about their products on Cruisers Forums. Advertise Here
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread Rate Thread Display Modes
Old 27-06-2016, 20:42   #16
Registered User
 
senormechanico's Avatar

Join Date: Aug 2003
Boat: Dragonfly 1000 trimaran
Posts: 7,141
Re: Ever found a body?... I did!

I lived on a river back in the 70's to the early 90's and one winter during a rainy storm event, the river flooded.
A friend of mine and I went to visit a neighbor on the other side of the river in our 8 foot pram, rowing like hell across the fast current when what I thought was a body went past.
My friend insisted it was just a log, but I pointed out the log was wearing levi's.
We couldn't stop because we would have wound up in Lake Washington, so I called the sheriff's office.
The next day they called back and thanked me for the call.
A ten year old boy had been missing for a few weeks from upriver.
They found him in Lake Washington and were able to ID him from my phone call.
__________________
The question is not, "Who will let me?"
The question is,"Who is going to stop me?"


Ayn Rand
senormechanico is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 28-06-2016, 08:26   #17
Registered User

Join Date: Aug 2015
Posts: 18
Re: Ever found a body?... I did!

Quote:
Originally Posted by SaltyMonkey View Post
YEs and the cold water makes them stay there.

300 ft? wow didn't know this. Thought it much shallower there.
That's why GG bridge is a suspension bridge. WAY too deep for conventional construction.
Shenandoah is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 28-06-2016, 08:27   #18
Registered User

Join Date: Jan 2013
Posts: 347
Re: Ever found a body?... I did!

Yes it does stay with you,I did alot of dirt bike stuff when I was younger in FL & I drove up on a trail that I ran often & one day there was a car back in back of the orange grove. .very odd for a car to get so far back there ,the door was open & I approached carefully & noticed a guy on the ground, I am thinking drunk,, but when I got a good look I was shocked! ! Pants were down around his ankles & his hands were taped behind his back & it looked like he was scalped from rear to front & the top was about 10 feet away,panic starts to set in as I am looking around because I didn't know if the killer was still around & I was gonna be next! Got the heck outta there!! Called cops ,never found out anything about it. ..scary..there are some real nuts out there!
Kita is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 28-06-2016, 08:45   #19
Hull Diver
 
fstbttms's Avatar

Cruisers Forum Supporter

Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Under a boat, in a marina, in the San Francisco Bay
Posts: 5,427
Re: Ever found a body?... I did!

I saw a woman jump off the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge once at Christmastime about 20 years ago. Stood on the bridge with binocs and spotted her for the Coasties as they responded. 'Course, they didn't follow the directions the CHP had relayed from me and searched the wrong piece of water for about an hour.
fstbttms is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 28-06-2016, 08:48   #20
Registered User

Join Date: May 2015
Posts: 45
Re: Ever found a body?... I did!

Quote:
Originally Posted by appick View Post

I did find it odd, after we were motoring away how unaffected I seemed to be. It was just kind of like, "huh... so that happened". Then I made breakfast. What else are you going to do life goes on.
This is a key point and something most seem to want to either forget or do not want to admit. There are BILLIONS of people in this world, and yes the death of any one is tragic to those that care/know/related to the deceased.

However for those NOT in that category, outside of "there but grace go I" most of us simply say "how sad" and move on. We, as a human, simply cannot truly, really "care" about everyone on the planet/every death.

Also encountering death should/does make one appreciate life even more and thus you enjoying the rest of the day/weekend is exactly what you should have done.
Boathooked is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 28-06-2016, 08:53   #21
cat herder, extreme blacksheep

Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: furycame alley , tropics, mexico for now
Boat: 1976 FORMOSA yankee clipper 41
Posts: 18,967
Images: 56
Re: Ever found a body?... I did!

having kept my boat near one of the few bridges in cali without a fencing to prevent jumpers, and a fone number posted on a sign, without a fone, a bridge which became a very popular jump off point for many suicides, yes we found plenty floaters.
there is even a book entitled floaters by joseph wambaugh regarding this exact bridge and the bay and the attitude accompanying this.
kayaking home to my moored boat after 4 days of it in emergency room in lost angeles, i kayaked over a floater at 1030 pm on a sunday night in the shallows of tidelands park beach, where the dinghies were kept.
good thing a friend was in area so i could go home, as i was exhausted and there was no way that guy was gonna recover from terminal death and decomposition.
it took the harbies 4 hours to respond. i was dead asleep when they finally conversed, err questioned the individual waiting for their arrival.
just another day in the life......
ps..jumping season is generally from mid november to mid february.
zeehag is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 28-06-2016, 08:59   #22
Registered User
 
sailon46's Avatar

Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: Houston
Boat: Beneteau Sense 46
Posts: 360
Images: 2
Re: Ever found a body?... I did!

I found a body of a young man on the beach across from the Coronado islands under the cliff. He was pretty moldy and bear scull, totally distended. Crabs were having a good breakfast. Told the military guard close buy with my poor Spanish "Hombre muerto alla playa" He acted as if it was a bother for him but I showed him where the remains were and he called the proper authorities.
Tell you what wear your life jackets this young man was crewing on a shrimper and he fell in they said at night.
sailon46 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 28-06-2016, 09:07   #23
Registered User

Join Date: Feb 2013
Location: Kingston, Ontario
Boat: Bayfield 36
Posts: 25
Re: Ever found a body?... I did!

Thanks for this. There a few better ways to learn lessons and answer the "what would I do if...." question than to hear about somebody else's experience. Some good lessons to learn here:
1. Stay alert on watch. Even when all is routine the unexpected can happen.
2. Be proactive. Something wasn't' quite right, you went to investigate.
3. Brief your crew. The unfamiliar can be frightening. Having information and time to adjust helps.
4. Keep other vessels informed. You alerted others of your situation and changed ETA.
By calling the Coast Guard, staying on station and providing the authorities with the assistance and information they needed to recover the body you helped return someone's loved one to them. BZ.
nelsmay is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 28-06-2016, 09:14   #24
Registered User
 
Wendi's Avatar

Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Kona, Hawaii
Boat: Lagoon 380
Posts: 184
Send a message via Skype™ to Wendi
Re: Ever found a body?... I did!

Walking on the beach in Southern Ca, I saw a black garbage bag that had washed ashore. So, being very curious, I walked over and tore it open. It had a pelvis, bits of meat still attached, but mostly just the entire pelvis bone left. Freaked me out. Someone was cut into pieces and tossed into the ocean. It still horrifies me to think that this happens.
__________________
Wendi is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 28-06-2016, 09:29   #25
Registered User
 
S/V Alchemy's Avatar

Join Date: May 2008
Location: Nova Scotia until Spring 2021
Boat: Custom 41' Steel Pilothouse Cutter
Posts: 4,976
Re: Ever found a body?... I did!

Quote:
Originally Posted by SaltyMonkey View Post
what a strange thread.

is this something to be proud of?
No, but it's something to be aware of, and my takeaway is the continuing importance of keeping a good, EYEBALL-BASED watch and not to cede that watch to various devices.

I spent some time with a police diver, and his stories of what happens to bodies in water are too gruesome to post here, but I suspect the relatives of the drowned person the OP found are grateful he was spotted sooner rather than later.
__________________
Can't sail? Read about our travels at https://alchemyonpassage.blogspot.com/. Can't sleep? Read www.alchemy2009.blogspot.com for fast relief. Can't read? Avoid www.volumesofsalt.blogspot.com, because it's just personal reviews of sea books.
S/V Alchemy is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 28-06-2016, 09:48   #26
Registered User

Join Date: Aug 2013
Location: panama
Boat: solaris 42 1978
Posts: 170
Re: Ever found a body?... I did!

in the bay of panama while dragging for my 350 dollar swim ladder that went over the side i pulled up what looked like remains . mens clothing belt pants what was left of a denim shirt wrapped in chains nothing there to recognize really ,, said a little prayer put it back where i found it ..
svfraidknot is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 28-06-2016, 10:29   #27
cruiser

Join Date: May 2010
Location: SF Bay Area; Former Annapolis and MA Liveaboard.
Boat: Looking and saving for my next...mid-atlantic coast
Posts: 6,197
Re: Ever found a body?... I did!

Quote:
Originally Posted by Shenandoah View Post
That's why GG bridge is a suspension bridge. WAY too deep for conventional construction.
Ummm whats conventional construction given it's a major port of entry and a narrow gap?
SaltyMonkey is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 28-06-2016, 10:53   #28
Registered User
 
markpierce's Avatar

Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: Central California
Boat: M/V Carquinez Coot
Posts: 3,782
Re: Ever found a body?... I did!

Bodies are recovered regularly from San Francisco Bay/Delta waters. I wouldn't be surprised to come across a floating corpse eventually.
__________________
Kar-KEEN-ez Koot
markpierce is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 28-06-2016, 11:28   #29
Registered User

Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Fort Lauderdale, FL
Posts: 184
Re: Ever found a body?... I did!

TWICE, actually, also in Chicago.

First one was in the river not far from the Billy Goat. I was working as a deckhand on the mini tanker that used to go around to the various harbors fueling boats before they installed pumps at the harbors. It was floating between the boat and the seawall. I ran to the pilothouse and told the captain, an old gentleman who'd seen a lot on that river. He grabbed the long-handled boat hook and asked me where it was...I pointed to where the body was floating and followed him thinking he was going to haul the body out of the water and onto the boat. Instead he pushed the body out from between the boat and the seawall.

"You don't EVER want to find one of these things," he said. 'The paperwork is unbelievable and you lose AT LEAST a whole day of work." When the body was freed the old man returned to the pilothouse, I let go of the lines and we headed towards the locks.

The second time was when I was running the Marlyn, the 300-passenger sightseeing boat that ran off the steps of the Shedd Aquarium during the days. There had been a small plane crash off of Meig's Field several month before. They found all the bodies on board except for the pilot. As we were headed out for our mid-afternoon cruise a young boy came running up to the pilothouse screaming, "There's a body in the water....There's a body in the water."

Sure enough there was and if he hadn't alerted me I might have run right over it. I radioed the police boat, there was no Coast Guard there in '76 and said, "You remember the body you were looking for from the plane crash?" They said they did, of course. I told them to get a fix on where I was because that's where he'd come up. "I'm going to get underway again," I said. "These people have gotten their two dollars worth of excitement for one day."
__________________
A small boat and a suitcase full of money beat a 40 footer tied to a bank every time!
oldsalt_1942 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 28-06-2016, 11:56   #30
Registered User
 
Capt Phil's Avatar

Join Date: Jun 2010
Location: Gig Harbor, WA
Boat: Prior boats: Transpac 49; DeFever 54
Posts: 2,874
Re: Ever found a body?... I did!

We offered the chief of the Sliaman Indian Village north of Powell River a ride to Stlllwater in BC one evening while sitting in the pub. He had been there most of the day and evening and was in pretty questionable condition but could walk/stagger to our boat. We put him in the bunk in the wheelhouse and all got on the top of the wheelhouse and drove the boat from there.
About 2:00 am, I happened to glance over to starboard and caught the chief out of the corner of my eye climbing the ratlines to join us up top. I saw him miss the step to gain access to the wheelhouse top deck and fall headfirst onto the 2" rail around the bulwarks then into the ocean. I threw the boat into neutral and told the two decky's to go on deck and help him aboard but he was so heavy they couldn't get him back aboard.
I had them cut the skiff loose and go after him to get a line on him and tow him back to the seine boat while I rigged a line through the power block to raise him back aboard.
By the time we got him along side, rigged a line under his shoulders and got him aboard, he had died. Later it was determined that a heart attack killed him.
I called the RCMP who met the boat about 5:00am in Stillwater with the coroner. They questioned us for about 3 hours and took everyone's statement. About 2 weeks later they called me and asked me to return to Powell River for an inquest hearing. All in all, the whole thing probably took about 2 days of questioning, testimony and travel.
Perhaps it is better just to leave dead people where you find them although there was a hell of a party in the Indian village to celebrate his passing! Phil
Capt Phil is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes Rate This Thread
Rate This Thread:

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Dumbest thing you ever did? sully75 The Sailor's Confessional 138 13-01-2015 09:09
Why Did I Ever.... nolandinsight The Sailor's Confessional 35 23-09-2013 10:49
Body and Drugs found on yacht bound for Australia. surfingminniwinni Cruising News & Events 12 17-11-2012 03:59
Did you ever see that beer commercial... Pura Vida Flotsam & Sailing Miscellany 1 12-04-2007 06:28

Advertise Here


All times are GMT -7. The time now is 03:43.


Google+
Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 1
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
Social Knowledge Networks
Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 1
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.

ShowCase vBulletin Plugins by Drive Thru Online, Inc.