Yacht sinks off Bay of Islands in 40knots

[wolfgal]

such a tragic story. my condolences to those concerned.

the news story account posted by Tillbury (thanks) gives us a glimpse at the way humans can bond and help one another survive... for me, this bonding-strength is our greatest asset, as humans. when things go south, our ability to become a unit can make a huge survival-or-not difference.

the windows being sucked out... storm shutters....: have they determined if this was due the plexi that was sucked out of the window frames OR if it was the hull that was not strong enough to keep the window frames in? or something else?

i can imagine the moment when they realised the EPIRB had gotten sucked out too. thank goodness they had back-up. and chocolate and water.

it is a good point to make: the stuff we need when things get rough, needs to be on hand, yet secured...


i think it was John Kretchmer who recommended locating the life raft off the back rail, accessible to the cockpit as opposed to having it up by the mast, as it can be impossible in extreme conditions to get forward at all. interesting point, i think.




wolfgal

[undercutter]

Originally Posted by wolfgal

i think it was John Kretchmer who recommended locating the life raft off the back rail, accessible to the cockpit as opposed to having it up by the mast, as it can be impossible in extreme conditions to get forward at all. interesting point, i think.

wolfgal

Mine is strapped to the outside of the rail at the stern in a custom built 1 1/4" SS tubing carrier that holds the life raft fixed with 3 straps that can be cut away or release the snap shackle and just kick it away. I have never seen another boat with the liferaft mounted in a carrier on the rails either outside or inside. I can't imagine having to lift that much weight when in a desperate situation in a seaway but then I guess people have been known to lift cars when the SHTF.


I guess if I ever go to NZ I will make sure to fit the storm boards first.


Now there is a good lesson to learn no matter what caused the window(s) to pop out.

[B23iL23]

Amel 50 and 60 have a rail storage for easy access. Much better than on the coach roof or in a locker.

[El Pinguino]

Originally Posted by DumnMad

I'm thinking they may have been hit beam on. Looking at the weather maps the wind is NE and not too many hours later NW - so waves lumpy and unpredictable.

To have a gale force wind backing like that from NE to NW will produce a truly horrific sea with breaking seas on the beam whichever way you point.... and it won't get much better even as the wind moderates... in fact it will probably get worse.

I know this is the sort of thing that sinks boats west of the Horn.... NW gale over SW swell... and I would wager played a large part in abandonments etc in the recent Golden Globe thingo and other recent circumnavs....

[barryglewis]

Our liferaft is in bracket outboard of pushpit. There because too heavy for me and or wife to lift out of cockpit. Has extra lashing as well as supplied quickrelease straps, knife carried handy nearby!
Survived capsize Feb 2018 off Sydney.

Did the sunk yacht lose the bracket, or did the liferaft come out of bracket? Did they have hydrostatic release?

[Paul L]

Originally Posted by B23iL23

Amel 50 and 60 have a rail storage for easy access. Much better than on the coach roof or in a locker.

I don't know, you see pictures of boats that have rolled and come up sans pushpit and pulpit rails.

[hpeer]

Nothing is perfect.

We have a quote high arch I built. We don’t carry a life raft, partly because of no good storage locations. But thinking about this thread I got wondering if I can mount one on the arch, underneath. So that if you opened it, it would fall on you.

That might work. Need to think about it. And costing an appropriate raft.

[B23iL23]

There is no "perfect" place.

On the coach roof it is a big target to getting washed away, plus you have to leave the cockpit to get to it.

In a locker and by the time you need to get into the raft you probably are too tired to lift it out.

For me, the rail is the best location. Not perfect but the best compromise.

Originally Posted by Paul L

I don't know, you see pictures of boats that have rolled and come up sans pushpit and pulpit rails.

[Paul L]

Originally Posted by B23iL23

There is no "perfect" place.

On the coach roof it is a big target to getting washed away, plus you have to leave the cockpit to get to it.

In a locker and by the time you need to get into the raft you probably are too tired to lift it out.

For me, the rail is the best location. Not perfect but the best compromise.

Yep, its all a tradeoff. My boat has a 'dedicated' box mounted in the open stern for a life raft. I mounted mine in front of the dodger instead of using the box. The box is used for dinghy fuel and other messy things etc.
On a passage to New Zealand we were getting ready to heave to to do some minor maintenance when we got hit by a wave on the aft quarter. We had a rookie crew onboard and she turned to my wife and said 'the back of your boat just fell off'. The box broke free and floated away from the boat. It probably ended up on an Australian beach.
No liferaft location is without risks.

[Eder]

I have mine in the rear lazarette...I doubt its worth attempting deployment etc in 60 knot winds and accompanying seas.

[Paul L]

Originally Posted by Eder

I have mine in the rear lazarette...I doubt its worth attempting deployment etc in 60 knot winds and accompanying seas.

I don't know. What other choice will you have on a sinking boat? Or one engulfed in flames.

[Tillsbury]

I have a non-canister liferaft in a cockpit locker, to avoid any chance of it being washed away unexpectedly. Downside is that it’s going to be a bit tricky if the boat is capsized, but we can’t have everything. I’m considering building a hatch on the transom to a compartment in the lazarette where it could live and I could easily get to it from the boat either way up, but that’s on the future list. It’s not particularly heavy, and I have no doubt it’ll be out in an instant in a real situation. It takes me just under 10 seconds from standing in the saloon to holding it ready to drop over the lifelines in a non-emergency situation. The trigger line is tied just inside the locker.

[Paul L]

Originally Posted by Tillsbury

I have a non-canister liferaft in a cockpit locker, to avoid any chance of it being washed away unexpectedly. Downside is that it’s going to be a bit tricky if the boat is capsized, but we can’t have everything. I’m considering building a hatch on the transom to a compartment in the lazarette where it could live and I could easily get to it from the boat either way up, but that’s on the future list. It’s not particularly heavy, and I have no doubt it’ll be out in an instant in a real situation. It takes me just under 10 seconds from standing in the saloon to holding it ready to drop over the lifelines in a non-emergency situation. The trigger line is tied just inside the locker.

Assuming you are a typical mom and pop cruiser, a better measurement of launch time is how long your partner would take to launch the raft assuming you are significantly injured. I've seen some boats setup where the raft weighs so much and is located so deeply in the boat that the weaker partner would never actually be capable of launching.

[Tillsbury]

Originally Posted by Paul L

Assuming you are a typical mom and pop cruiser, a better measurement of launch time is how long your partner would take to launch the raft assuming you are significantly injured. I've seen some boats setup where the raft weighs so much and is located so deeply in the boat that the weaker partner would never actually be capable of launching.

It’s a valid point, and one I do attempt to address. My wife is very small and suffers from MS (particularly fatigue). In most situations, asking her to get herself out to the cockpit would be too much to ask, so debating whether or not she can deploy a liferaft is irrelevant. I stay tethered on, and in case of fire or sinking, I’ll pop the liferaft then go get her and chuck her in

If I’m seriously injured, she has her vhf certificate and knows where the epirb is. There’s nothing else she can do, realistically.

[wolfgal]

Originally Posted by Tillsbury

I have a non-canister liferaft in a cockpit locker, to avoid any chance of it being washed away unexpectedly. Downside is that it’s going to be a bit tricky if the boat is capsized, but we can’t have everything. I’m considering building a hatch on the transom to a compartment in the lazarette where it could live and I could easily get to it from the boat either way up, but that’s on the future list. It’s not particularly heavy, and I have no doubt it’ll be out in an instant in a real situation. It takes me just under 10 seconds from standing in the saloon to holding it ready to drop over the lifelines in a non-emergency situation. The trigger line is tied just inside the locker.

this thread has me wondering about something similar...

: the life raft (in a case) stowed in a RESET space (like a rectangular cavity) that is built into in the exterior side of the stern

a modification like this might be impossible for many and most existing boats (especially double-enders), but...

in theory, could a reset space in the transom be a good spot on boats with a transom ?

is the idea itself practical for storing and deploying a life raft?

(please be kind)



wolfgal