What would you do?

[30yearslater]

Let me set the scenario first. You are out sailing along a southern shore with light winds making 3.5 knots at night. No VHF radio aboard but a cell phone is available. You spot an orange parachute flare and then a second 3 minutes later approximately 15 miles distant. You whip out the hand bearing compass and take a bearing. Do you proceed to the area to search for a vessel in distress? Remember this will take some time to reach the area of the flares. Phone the Coast Guard to inquire of a vessel in distress? Say screw it and head in for the night? I used the cell phone and reported my position and bearing to the flares. The sighting had been reported by another vessel 30 miles east but no Mayday had been received. The Coast Guard checked with Canadian Coast Guard to verify this was a training exercise.
Still the sick feeling of the moment when you realize you have to make the call to alter course/plans and render aid even if it will require a substantial deviation is something to think about.

[Tingum]

I would immediatley go out and buy two good VHFs. One permantly mounted with a masthead antenna and a handheld! Sailing without the ability to contact other vessels is STUPID!

[StuM]

You did the right thing. Report it first. I'd alter course and head in that direction until such time as the Coast Guard releases me from my obligation to assist.

Refer SOLAS Chap 5 Reg 33:

The master of a ship at sea which is in a position to be able to provide assistance on receiving information from any source that persons are in distress at sea, is bound to proceed with all speed to their assistance, if possible informing them or the search and rescue service that the ship is doing so. This obligation to provide assistance applies regardless of the nationality or status of such persons or the circumstances in which they are found. If the ship receiving the distress alert is unable or, in the special circumstances of the case, considers it unreasonable or unnecessary to proceed to their assistance, the master must enter in the log-book the reason for failing to proceed to the assistance of the persons in distress, taking into account the recommendation of the Organization, to inform the appropriate search and rescue service accordingly.

[StuM]

Originally Posted by Tingum

I would immediatley go out and buy two good VHFs. One permantly mounted with a masthead antenna and a handheld! Sailing without the ability to contact other vessels is STUPID!

This too!

[Delancey]

What Tingum said.

[Calif.Ted]

Calling CG is appropriate, in a 27' sailboat it would take you 3 hours (at least) to get to where you thought it MIGHT be.

[seaman-lew]

you can contact the CG with a cell

[Hoodsail]

You need to respond until notified otherwise as earlier noted. Definitely need at least 1 preferably 2 vhf on board, 1 mounted & 1 handheld. Pull out chart of area and ensure no shallows between u, destination on new heading. With vhf u could have monitored progress of situation with CG and your potential 30 mile reroute may have been much, much shorter.

[lesterbutch]

Realistically in a sailboat at those distances I would doubt the Coast Guard would recommend Your proceeding toward the area at an effective 2.5-3 knots that's about a 5 hour run, you would be better off to put out a pawn call with the
information so other boats closer to the area might respond. always ask the Coast Guard if they want you to proceed to the area.

[Cadence]

Originally Posted by Tingum

I would immediatley go out and buy two good VHFs. One permantly mounted with a masthead antenna and a handheld! Sailing without the ability to contact other vessels is STUPID!

I don't know about the hand held but the rest gets an amen.

[roland stockham]

Also worth considering your vessels ability to give aid. With a basic setup, no VHF, Solo, do your have a means of recovering a casualty in the water? How much fuel do you have? What is your experience in rescue situations? Are you realistically going to be able to help or just be in the way? We all have a duty to respond to emergencies but only to the point where we don't put ourselves or are own vessel at risk.
A good learning point from this is to look at how and where you sail plus your training and consider if you should do some training and add to equipment to be ready for next time. And yes, at least get a VHF, cell phone are unreliable with lots of dead zones to seaward and don't let you contact nearby vessels. Next time it could be you sending up flares and not able to broadcast a mayday!

[boatman61]

I would contact the rescue services giving details of my sighting.. position, course and bearing of the flares.. I would also inform them I have altered course to render any possible assistance stating type and size of boat and rough eta..
I have the attitude any possible help is better than none and.. if winds were light I would start my engine and got her up to hull speed.
Having once experienced a judgemental ******* who would not render assistance because to his mind "Someone who cant sail or operate his engine has no right to be out there in the 1st place"..
Needless to say the harbourmaster and Coastie had to hold me back from punching his lights out.
Better to render assistance straight away and pass any judgements later.. its what you'd want if you are in the *****..

[jrbogie]

uh, ahem. start the damn motor, throttle up, pointy end of the boat toward flair sighting, THEN shout out any way you can for help. sheesh people.

[robwilk37]

its been a long time, and im under-caffeinated this morning but im remembering something about back-to-back yellow flairs signalling a sub prepping to surface (?)

[30yearslater]

All these geniuses calling me stupid. When did sailors become such sissies that they need to rely on a radio of questionable worth. What were they thinking taking the clipper ships around the great capes without
VHF. I'm sure glad the Brits, Spaniards, French and everyone else didn't concern themselves with crying for help every time $hit hit the fan. Did you Einstein's read the post or hop to an inaccurate conclusion? There are no ORANGE Solas parachute flares. The color is RED. As to cell coverage, there is continuous coverage on Lake Ontario.