Waikawa boating accident

[Alan Wheeler]

A tragic accident occurred last night (Friday evening) in Waikawa Bay Picton. A King Salmon company boat bringing 6 working crew home, collided with the stern of a 27metre 90Tonne vessel that was moored in the bay. Ex Navy vessel now called Flightless. Actually the news say's it is moored, but I am pretty sure it is anchored due to not being able to get a mooring. Two men were killed and one is seriously injured in Wellington Hospital. The unofficial comment so far is that the accident may have been caused by sunstrike and the boat was traveling at about 50Kms(25kts). I am not sure if I know the guys killed as there names have not been released yet, but I do know they were locals from here in Blenheim.

[Robertcateran]

25 knots is certainly fast enough to get hurt if you stop suddenly. Don't want to encourage the Nanny state, but it is something to think about how likely we are to get injured with hard bits of boat hitting you at that speed. I have been wondering about fast passages on multihulls. If they are travelling at 25 to 30 knots and they stop suddenly through something so minor as their foils suddenly encountering a large patch of floating seaweed, someone could easily get hurt.
Robert

[Alan Wheeler]

Well the interesting thing now will be if the inquiry comes up with a "why were they going that speed in a mooring area?"

[MikeNZ]

Originally Posted by Alan Wheeler

Well the interesting thing now will be if the inquiry comes up with a "why were they going that speed in a mooring area?"

Exactly what I was thinking, Wheels, but I get passed by heaps of power boats approaching Waikawa marina at ridiculous speeds which seems to be the norm down there.

Tragic though to think that people get killed like this.

[exfishnz]

Originally Posted by MikeNZ

Exactly what I was thinking, Wheels, but I get passed by heaps of power boats approaching Waikawa marina at ridiculous speeds which seems to be the norm down there.

Tragic though to think that people get killed like this.

Maybe manslaughter charges on the way?

I get passed by heaps of power boats approaching Waikawa marina at ridiculous speeds

Doesn't surprise me. Back in 94/95 when former Blakie's America's cup team were practice racing in WGTN, they were racing out of Lambton Quay wharf @ high speed, (not 5kts) in their large Zodic's. We were repairing something on the side of vessel in b/w the wharf & vessel, the surge they made almost caused an accident. We shook our fists & screamed a few sailor words @ the driver of the zodiac (Blakie was on the back). It just so happened that we had a bloke down for a cuppa (trying to steady his cuppa in the surge) who's mate's with the Harbour master, an hour later the Harbour master was down there having a word to Blakie's team.

I dunno what the situation is back over your way, but over here I think every state govt has made it mandatory for anybody in control of a power vessel (incl dingies, jet ski's etc) to either have a martime type ticket or visit their state licensing vehicle authority & pass a test.

(I digress a bit) This topic has made me remember when they first bought those Fast Ferries over, their wave surge would almost make us break our moorings, in-fact I think the larger ships did break there's.

[MidLandOne]

Originally Posted by exfishnz

Maybe manslaughter charges on the way?

From Part 91 of the NZ Maritime Rules -

91.6 Speed of Vessels
(1) No person may, without reasonable excuse, propel or navigate a vessel
(including a vessel towing a person or an object) at a proper speed
exceeding 5 knots:

(a) within 50 metres of any other vessel, raft, or person in the water;

[Alan Wheeler]

but I get passed by heaps of power boats approaching Waikawa marina at ridiculous speeds

We get that problem all the time over our side as well. Large launches traveling at very high speeds far to close. Even in the channel where it is reduced speed to 5kts, they all pass me. I get really annoyed at the boats that travel faster than 5kts in our Marina and the limit there is 3kts and a no wake zone.
But the one situation I am really amazed at on the QC side is how the small passenger ferries like cougar line etc, can be allowed to travel at full speed right up to a jetty and then travel away at full speed. I know they are on schedules and what not, but the wakes created that travel around the bays are rather large and powerful and very annoying for ones that are moored or at anchor.

[Steve Pope]

I see that they tried to recreate the conditions at the time of the crash, apparently that didn't shed any light on the cause, of course if it was possibly caused by sunstrike maybe it was cloudy at the time of the reconstruction.
I know at sometimes of the year up here you can come around a particular corner on SH12 and be instantly blinded by the setting sun.

[Alan Wheeler]

It was a sunny day, but I am struggling to see how they would have had the Sun in the right position to have it in their eyes. But I can think of no other cause. It is a long bay with clear point of entry off the greater sound and the boats are moored a good distance in. The Ship is on the outside of the mooring field.
If anyone can post a Google Earth picture of Waikawa, that would be great for getting bearings.

[exfishnz]

Originally Posted by Alan Wheeler

If anyone can post a Google Earth picture of Waikawa, that would be great for getting bearings.

If my memory (& google) is correct then this should be Waikawa (around the corner from picton).

Waikawa is at "A" (NE), Picton is SW from there.

(click on pic's to enlarge)

[MidLandOne]

Originally Posted by Alan Wheeler

It was a sunny day, but I am struggling to see how they would have had the Sun in the right position to have it in their eyes.

Is hard to imagine isn't it, especially now that the sun is as far towards north as it gets when setting.

We are ultra careful when proceeding into the setting sun especially where it is possible sea kayaks may be (and they are common in the Sounds, of course) and which can be very hard to see under those conditions - but an over 100 foot big fat boat like that ex patrol craft?

[Alan Wheeler]

OK, ruffly the boat (or is it a ship?) is anchored out from where the road is named "Prot Underwood Road and (Marinaview Estate is in from it). So they are way off the normal track. I imagine North is as the photo is orientated, North up. So at current time, the sun would be setting to the Norwest. Which coming in at that angle should put the sun to the hard right of them. Strange.

[Alan Wheeler]

Well I don't think charges will be laid, because as I understand correctly, the driver was one of the guy's killed. A survivor described that the Driver was shielding his face from the Sun and at the very last moment noticed the large anchored boat but it was too late. At least that is what I was told today, but this is totally unofficial and could be wrong.

[exfishnz]

Originally Posted by Alan Wheeler

shielding his face from the Sun

I may have already written this in another thread. But one of my nautical school tutors taught me that your vessel should be able to stop in half your visible distance. I think this commonsense rule came from the days when ships where hitting each other when navigating through fog, but you'd think the same would apply to this situation (sun) & night time navigation.

From MidLandOne: From Part 91 of the NZ Maritime Rules

I think the same rule applies to less than 200m from the shoreline? (but don't know how close this accident was to the shoreline).

[MidLandOne]

Yes, not to exceed 5 knots within 200m of the shore is correct here.