Yacht Lost in North West Passage

[StuM]

Yesterday night, the French-flagged yacht "Anahita", an aluminum Ovni 345, sank in Ballot Strait of the Northwest Passage. The disaster occurred in Depot Bay, just east of Bellot Strait. According to initial information, the ship was trapped by drifting sea ice from which it could not escape.
...

The course of "Anahita" from Nuuk on the coast of Greenland went via Baffin Bay to Pond Inlet and on to the entrance of Bellot Strait. There the skipper allowed the yacht to get into floating sea ice and sink.

Under the pressure of the ice and current of Bellot Strait, the "Anahita" then ruptured and began leaking resulting in sinking. The crew, two Argentines, had to flee to the drifting sea ice floes. However, they still managed to drop an emergency call and activate the epirb of the boat. It sent just long enough for the Canadian SAR in Trenton Ontario station to start a rescue operation.

Both men have since been taken in by other nearby yachts who responded to the "Mayday". And this despite the fact that all the crews presently in the region with their yachts have had a great need to bring themselves and their ships to safety in the last hours in front of rising drifts of sea ice floes.

...



More information here:


http://arcticnorthwestpassage.blogspot.com/2018/08/canadian-coast-guard-takes-11-hours-to.html

[danielamartindm]

Scary stuff, and I'm thinking of the horrible sounds the crew heard as the hull was crushed; but what a tribute to the tradition of rendering aid to fellow mariners in distress, even at personal risk .

[LakeSuperior]

From four days ago...

the Canadian Coast Guard service had this to say:

Good morning, Due to heavier than normal ice concentrations in the Canadian arctic waters north of 70 degrees, the Canadian Coast Guard, recommends that pleasure craft do not navigate in the Beaufort Sea, Barrow, Peel Sound, Franklin Strait and Prince Regent. CCG icebreakers cannot safely escort pleasure craft. Operators of pleasure craft considering a northwest passage should also consider the risk of having to winter in a safe haven in the Arctic, or in the case of an emergency, be evacuated from beset vessels. Safety of mariners is our primary concern. REGARDS, NORDREG CANADA 181256UTC\LR

[Sailormantx]

It's a bad year for the NWP, even the coast guard is have a tough time of it this season. I have some friends that were attempting the passage this year from the east side, they turned back a few days ago as it appears to be impassable this season.

[lordgeoff]

Originally Posted by StuM

Yesterday night, the French-flagged yacht "Anahita", an aluminum Ovni 345, sank in Ballot Strait of the Northwest Passage. The disaster occurred in Depot Bay, just east of Bellot Strait. According to initial information, the ship was trapped by drifting sea ice from which it could not escape.
...

The course of "Anahita" from Nuuk on the coast of Greenland went via Baffin Bay to Pond Inlet and on to the entrance of Bellot Strait. There the skipper allowed the yacht to get into floating sea ice and sink.

Under the pressure of the ice and current of Bellot Strait, the "Anahita" then ruptured and began leaking resulting in sinking. The crew, two Argentines, had to flee to the drifting sea ice floes. However, they still managed to drop an emergency call and activate the epirb of the boat. It sent just long enough for the Canadian SAR in Trenton Ontario station to start a rescue operation.

Both men have since been taken in by other nearby yachts who responded to the "Mayday". And this despite the fact that all the crews presently in the region with their yachts have had a great need to bring themselves and their ships to safety in the last hours in front of rising drifts of sea ice floes.

...



More information here:


http://arcticnorthwestpassage.blogspot.com/2018/08/canadian-coast-guard-takes-11-hours-to.html

Stupidity and bad seamanship.
No other description I can think of to describe the folly of these people.
Basing a trip on the Global Warming nonsense.
Stupidity and bad seamanship.

[rognvald]

Originally Posted by lordgeoff

Stupidity and bad seamanship.
No other description I can think of to describe the folly of these people.
Basing a trip on the Global Warming nonsense.
Stupidity and bad seamanship.

So,
If an expedition yacht or even a pleasure yacht encounters unforeseen weather or, in this case, ice--and sinks, it is stupidity and bad seamanship? There are, undoubtedly, many of us on this Forum who have done considerable sailing and have not encountered a bad day despite due diligence and competent weather planning. It's part of the game that we have to accept. I believe your statement was either a.) intended to be trollish in nature or b.) is patently naive. Rognvald

[Dooglas]

Originally Posted by lordgeoff

Stupidity and bad seamanship.
No other description I can think of to describe the folly of these people.
Basing a trip on the Global Warming nonsense.
Stupidity and bad seamanship.

I believe I can be quite confident in saying that those who attempted or planned to attempt the Northwest Passage this year in small boats did so because it has been possible in the last several years and quite a few have successfully made the passage. This summer the ice did not clear as expected. So much for the best laid plans of man. The only true stupidity I see here is in ignoring the hazard warning of the Canadian Coast Guard. The boat which did that paid the price.

[rognvald]

Originally Posted by LakeSuperior

From four days ago...

the Canadian Coast Guard service had this to say:

Good morning, Due to heavier than normal ice concentrations in the Canadian arctic waters north of 70 degrees, the Canadian Coast Guard, recommends that pleasure craft do not navigate in the Beaufort Sea, Barrow, Peel Sound, Franklin Strait and Prince Regent. CCG icebreakers cannot safely escort pleasure craft. Operators of pleasure craft considering a northwest passage should also consider the risk of having to winter in a safe haven in the Arctic, or in the case of an emergency, be evacuated from beset vessels. Safety of mariners is our primary concern. REGARDS, NORDREG CANADA 181256UTC\LR

LS,
There was no previous mention of the CG's warning in Stu's initial post. Do we know for certain that the crew was aware of the warning? If so, I owe an apology to LG since their act was indeed reckless and not just an unforeseen weather issue. Otherwise, my initial remarks will stand. Best, R

[LakeSuperior]

Originally Posted by rognvald

LS,
There was no previous mention of the CG's warning in Stu's initial post. Do we know for certain that the crew was aware of the warning? If so, I owe an apology to LG since their act was indeed reckless and not just an unforeseen weather issue. Otherwise, my initial remarks will stand. Best, R

Can't be sure if they were aware of that specific warning however the common knowledge for this season seems to be the passage is blocked and will not open. The ice maps definitively show this. We know the present ice conditions did not happen overnight.

Seems like a case of wanting the participation ribbon so badly that prudent seamanship was vacated.

[rognvald]

Originally Posted by LakeSuperior

Can't be sure if they were aware of that specific warning however the common knowledge for this season seems to be the passage is blocked and will not open. The ice maps definitively show this. We know the present ice conditions did not happen overnight.

Seems like a case of wanting the participation ribbon so badly that prudent seamanship was vacated.

Thanks for the reply, LS. I have read several subsequent articles detailing their tragic loss. None has mentioned, if it were the case, that they were aware of the warning. Perhaps another update will be forthcoming. Nonetheless, it is every serious boatowners worst nightmare. Best, R

[Dooglas]

Originally Posted by rognvald

There was no previous mention of the CG's warning in Stu's initial post. Do we know for certain that the crew was aware of the warning?

This is an excerpt from the original report posted by newhaul in the other CF thread currently underway on this incident in Seamanship and Boat handling.

"The skipper of the "Anahita", Pablo David Saad, had deliberately ignored the official warning and instead oriented himself to the skipper of another yacht, who has traveled the passage several times and who had been hoping in the last few days still for a withdrawal of the ice , Saad has been on long-distance sailing for several years with changing crews. He as well as his current companion come from San Martín de los Andes, a city in southwestern Argentina near the border with Chile. "

[StuM]

Originally Posted by rognvald

LS,
There was no previous mention of the CG's warning in Stu's initial post. Do we know for certain that the crew was aware of the warning? If so, I owe an apology to LG since their act was indeed reckless and not just an unforeseen weather issue. Otherwise, my initial remarks will stand. Best, R

In the blog post I linked to:


"That's exactly what the Canadian authorities have urged all crews in recent days. It is not foreseeable that the passage would open at all this year. On the contrary, the current ice situation for yachts is dangerous. The crews should either move their ships back south or look for a safe hibernation port in Baffin Bay or Greenland,


The skipper of the "Anahita", Pablo David Saad, had deliberately ignored the official warning and instead oriented himself to the skipper of another yacht, who has traveled the passage several times and who had been hoping in the last few days still for a withdrawal of the ice ,"

[Otia]

Originally Posted by lordgeoff

Basing a trip on the Global Warming nonsense.

Oh my...

[lordgeoff]

Originally Posted by Dooglas

I believe I can be quite confident in saying that those who attempted or planned to attempt the Northwest Passage this year in small boats did so because it has been possible in the last several years and quite a few have successfully made the passage. This summer the ice did not clear as expected. So much for the best laid plans of man. The only true stupidity I see here is in ignoring the hazard warning of the Canadian Coast Guard. The boat which did that paid the price.

I repeat. Stupidity. Folly. Poor Seamanship.

[rognvald]

Originally Posted by StuM

In the blog post I linked to:


"That's exactly what the Canadian authorities have urged all crews in recent days. It is not foreseeable that the passage would open at all this year. On the contrary, the current ice situation for yachts is dangerous. The crews should either move their ships back south or look for a safe hibernation port in Baffin Bay or Greenland,


The skipper of the "Anahita", Pablo David Saad, had deliberately ignored the official warning and instead oriented himself to the skipper of another yacht, who has traveled the passage several times and who had been hoping in the last few days still for a withdrawal of the ice ,"

Thanks for the clarification, Stu. My apologies to LordGeoff. Best, Rognvald