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49erGBR735HSC View Drop Down
Really should get out more
Really should get out more
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Joined: 30 Mar 05
Location: United Kingdom
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Posts: 1991 		Post Options Post Options   Quote 49erGBR735HSC Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Topic: Sunsail Court Case
    Posted: 26 Mar 06 at 5:41pm
Originally posted by m_liddell

Originally posted by 49erGBR735HSC

We know that if a crew member is trapped below the boat, we won't be able to right it before the trapped member becomes unconcious and know how to deal with it. Maybe establishments that use high performance boats should consider the same areas as we have.

Interestingly the RYA article http://www.rya.org.uk/NewsAndEvents/newsroom/news/lefkadaacc ident.htm says:

"The conditions of RYA Recognition for Training Centres have now been revised to ensure that instructors are aware of the dangers, and masthead floats are now used where necessary to prevent inversion. Safety boat crews are now trained to right an inverted boat immediately, rather than try to disentangle the crew."

With some boats though, its impossible to right them immediately. Boats with fully battened sails especially carry a lot of weight when submerged with water and I'd tend to say that with higher performance boats, the times involved with righting them could prove fatal to someone trapped under the water. If my crew is trapped underneath my boat, my instant reaction would be to go straight for the knife because I'd rate his chances of survival higher. The mast floats are a step in the right direction though.

 
Dennis Watson 49er GBR735
Helensburgh S.C
Boat Insurance from Noble Marine

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Stefan Lloyd View Drop Down
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Joined: 03 Aug 04
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Posts: 1599 		Post Options Post Options   Quote Stefan Lloyd Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 26 Mar 06 at 5:52pm

Originally posted by 49erGBR735HSC

The staff seem to be getting used as "scape-goats" when they would have been doing everything that they could to help the girl with the means they had. In my eyes, the structure of the company is to blame for the incident.

If by "the structure" you mean "the management", then I think that is the truth but not the whole truth.

If, as has been suggested by m_liddell, trapezing to leeward was common and allowed, then as qualified professional instructors, the instructors at the centre should have stopped it. It seems quite possible that trapezing to leeward was the direct cause of this girl's death, although none of us know for certain what happened.

The fact that the staff on hand did everything to rescue the girl after the capsize does not make them blameless, if they could have prevented it in the first place.
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