Procedures for Escaping Being Dragged Upon

[forsailbyowner]

Ok this morning whilst sitting taking care of business loud crash and mayhem. Turns out a +-40' coronado busted its moorings and came our way. Started by getting hooked on a lifeline and breaking two stanchions then bounced down the side. Now its sitting beached on tank Island. The wind was blowing steady 25 gusting above 30. I feel lucky that I was freed but was very worried at the time that his ground tackle and mine were tangled. Dark wind howling choppy, what would be proper procedure for attempting untangling? Cut loose ground tackle? Reverse engine and attempt untangling? Time would be of essence, other boats and land downwind. A large cat must have just been missed or was struck, he's between where boat is beached and us. How aggravating is it when people don't maintain their stuff and put others lives at risk.

[bewitched]

I had time to ponder this very question a couple of years ago. I was anchored off an exposed island in Sulu Sea when a thunderstorm came off the mainland with quite a bit of wind and swell. To cut a long story short a 60ft+ steel dive boat came down past me, maybe 20 ft to one side, dragging it's mooring.

My plan was that as soon as I thought his mooring had caught my anchor chain, I was going to drop the snubber, cut the bitter end, head out for the rest of the night and retrieve my anchor the next day. As it happens, we didn't get tangled.

It was interesting to note that the next morning, the dive boat lifted his mooring with his windlass, motored to the top of the bay again and dropped it!! I didn't hang around to find out if he drags every night, or only when it's windy.

[forsailbyowner]

Seems there's been a rash of runaway boats around Key west recently. The coronado that ran into us is laying on its side on tank island, I talked to someone that was dragged upon, listened to conversation about yawl drifting around and these are just the ones I've heard of. Next front I'm leaving crowded area and heading west behind sparsely populated islands.

[Navicula]

your boat has damage... what happens now....does the other boat pay...
who fixes your boat when this happens, or do you just keep his boat

[Vasco]

Don't anchor behind iffy looking boats but if you have to be ready to either pick the hook up fast or let it all out with a buoy on it. If there's really no time just motor away with the hook down which might cut down the chances that he'll snag you chain. There are a lot of irresponsible jerks out there and also a lot of folks that have no idea of how to anchor.

[S/V Antares]

Happened to me in Virgin Gorda off Mosquito Is. A guy dropped his hook and left for dinner. The boat dregged by me so I tied it off and went in for dinner and told him. He said thats not possible and I should leave his boat alone! The next morning he dragged again while he was having coffee on the back deck. I watched silently as his head hit my bow roller giving him a solid divit. I told him next time I might not be there to save his boat and he should learn to anchor!

[forsailbyowner]

I'm going to take the damage on the chin. I talked to a guy that has been living here 9 years and the one with the coronado doesn't have any money. Been two days now and haven't seen anyone near boat sitting on the beach. Its hard to find a safe that's safe to anchor around Key west. There must be a hundred boats around the bight. That was a scary experience, with the boat pitching, the wind howling and very dark looking out and seeing a boat longer than ours , attached to us. When thinking about motoring out I'd have to leave that as last resort. I could see adding a fouled prop to the mix. I guess I could see attaching my ground tackle to his bow, drifting off then motoring away with number two ground tackle ready to set. Would be the nice guy thing to do. But after I got him off shroud was just happy to see it gone.

[Cheechako]

Well, if there's anything you want on his boat, just take it for compensation, it's "salvage " at this point right?