DaleH
FOUNDER of Classic Parker Forum
FYI, this just happended to a good friend and his wife. Many lessons to be learned here. I told my friend that whenever I'm anchored up and people may go swimming, ahead of time, I'll always throw out a Type 4 cushion (white so it can be seen) on a 30'-40' rode of poly (flotating) line, put out behind the boat. I keep my throwable ring buoy in its holder in the cockpit in reserve, as this buoy has the rode flaked (for easier and furthest throwing) and it has a 60' rode.
But even then ... I don't think my preparations would have prevented this incident from occurring. The lesson about donning a life jacket FIRST if you have to enter the water to rescue someone is really good advice ... if not wearing one beforehand that is.
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June 19th 2010 the scariest day of my life
"June 19th 2010 did not start out like an ordinary day and it certainly did not end like one. At 1:30am, a soon to be HubSpot candidate (I’ve been trying to recruit him) met me at the boat for early morning fishing - the company was good, the fishing not so great, despite our theory of the incoming tide producing big fish right around false dawn.
Before we called it quits we ran into Tom, a fishing friend who weeks earlier had saved 2 lives in the river after 8 people were swept into the strong current off the point, one person did not make it. 3 people have died in this river this year. We got back to the docks, said my goodbyes to my guest and then took a powernap on the boat waiting for my wife and her grandmother to arrive around mid-day. When they arrived at the boat we loaded it up with food, drinks and the BBQ, anticipating a great day on the water with temperatures approaching 90 degrees. We left the docks and headed for the flats to anchor up and enjoy the beautiful day on the water.
The wind was strong at 15 knots and the boat traffic was what you’d expect on a beautiful summer day and after a couple of hours we decided to head up river and anchor off a small island, figuring there would be less wind and boat traffic, making grilling and eating more enjoyable. 20-minutes later we arrived at our destination. I anchored the boat and chilled out for a bit.
An hour went by and it was getting close to BBQ time but before dinner I decided to go for a quick swim. I proceeded to climb on top of the boats hard top and listened to my wife’s grandmother egg me on to jump off. A couple of seconds later I was in the 70-degree water and enjoying my swim. It was an incoming tide and the current was flowing at a good clip and it took a little but not a lot of effort getting back to the boat. Before setting up the BBQ I went back on top of the hard top to dry off and chill out on a beanbag.
Several minutes later my wife decided to hang off the side of the boat, dipping her legs in the water. This was unusual behavior for her as she does not know how to swim and even when we are a the beach, anchored up on the sand bar in 3-feet of water, she never goes in. A second later she had lost her grip on the side of the boat and was fully emerged in the water. I was a bit alarmed she was in the water but thought she’d be able to grab onto the grab handle on the swim platform just a few feet away. This was not the case.
The current took her past the swim platform and she went under water for at least a second. I immediately jumped down off the hard top and tried to throw her a line. She did not see the line and I do not believe she would have been able to get to it unless it hit her off the head, which it did not. At this point in time she was a good 15-feet away from the boat, drifting in the current and trying her best to keep her head above water. My guess is 5-seconds had passed from the time she lost her grip on the side of the boat until the point where she was 15-feet from the boat.
Nothing was going through my head other than figuring out a way to save my wife’s life. I immediately jumped in to save her knowing my lifeguard training from 20-years ago should come in handy. It took a few seconds for me to get to her and when I did we were a good 60-feet from the boat and drifting with the current, approximately 100-feet from shore and drifting parallel to land.
I threw my arm across her chest and proceeded to keep her head above water and trying my best to swim toward the boat. After 30-seconds of trying we were not making any headway and I became exhausted trying to hold her up, fight the current and keep my head above water. I knew the situation was going from bad to worse.
I told her our only chance was to not fight the current and swim to shore which we started to do except the current wanted to take us parallel to shore making it tough but not impossible to eventually get there. The big problem was that I was exhausted and she was still having a tough time keeping her head above water, despite my efforts to hold her up and I started to cramp up like I had never felt before. My legs cramped and my chest cramped, making it difficult to breathe deep breaths. Even sitting here Sunday night writing this I have yet to completely catch my breath. The situation had now gone from bad to worse to life threatening.
I scanned the horizon and noticed a couple of kayakers up river (down current) and began to yell and wave my arm knowing they were our only chance for survival. They noticed us and sprang into immediate action fighting the current and making their way toward us. It could not have been more than 2-minutes for them to reach us but during that time we were having a tough time just keeping our heads above water - we were clearly running out of time.
The kayakers arrived and we grabbed the sides of their kayaks, hanging on for dear life. The woman kayaker had a life jacket on her kayak and we quickly got it on my wife. We then hung on to the back of the kayaks and they proceeded to take us to the boat. After a few minutes of paddling we were not making headway against the current (by this time it was most likely maximum flow) so the male kayaker dragging my wife took her to shore and the female kayaker tried her best to get me to the boat, still not working though. By this time a couple of jet skiers were passing by and I waved them down. They made their way to us and I hopped on the back of one of them and we headed for shore to pick up my wife.
Less than 5-minutes later we were back at the boat and made our way off the jet ski and onto the boat, handed the kayaker the life vest back and thanked everyone for their kindness and quick thinking. If it had not been for the kayakers I’m not sure I’d be here writing this today. We hung out on the boat for a couple of hours trying to calm our nerves which was easier said than done and clearly an emotional time for the 3 of us.
But by this time the tide was at full high and the current had gone slack showing no signs of the raging current which had been present just hours before. For the first time in my life I think I was knocking on deaths door and my wife will tell you the door had opened for her as she ingested water though her nose and mouth when she went under. But like a good Martini - we were shaken - but lived to tell about the ordeal, although it still seems so surreal.
For my fellow boating friends I have a few words of wisdom and pray you will never go through what my wife and I went through (or her poor grandmother who helplessly witnessed the entire thing) the first being keep your throw cushion in a handy place every time you are on the boat.
Next is keeping your VHF radio on at all times and show everyone guest on your boat how to operate your VHF. If someone goes in the water immediately throw the person the throw cushion even if they can’t get to it the cushion will be in the water should you jump it. You can always swim to the cushion and bring it over to the person who fell in.
Next bit of advice is if someone does fall in and if you must go in after them (I do not recommend this unless you are a trained lifeguard or a strong swimmer) please, please, please do not make the mistake I made and just jump in. Please put on a life vest first! If we had either a throw cushion in the water or if I had thrown on a life vest it would have been only an inconvenience as the current could have drifted us for hours, but the chance for drowning would have been eliminated. We have 10 life jackets on the boat (had purchased 4 new jackets just this week) yet none were taken out.
Next bit of advice is if someone goes in the water, don’t ever misjudge the current thinking everything will be OK if someone goes in the water – hail the Coast Guard on the VHF. I’d rather explain to the CG that someone fell in and we saved them before they arrived, rather than to be in a helpless situation with absolutely no one around. If the kayakers were not on the scene then at least the CG would have eventually made their way to us, hopefully before it was too late.
Everyone on the boat should be wearing a life jacket although this is in many instances easier said than done. If people are not wearing them then at the very least have them handy in case of an emergency.
Mine are stowed in one locker in the cockpit with several more in the cabin convenient and out of the way but that’s part of the problem … they were not clearly visible and had they been I would have likely grabbed one during the ordeal. When an accident is unfolding in front of you believe me, you have no time to think and decisions are made subconsciously and in micro seconds.
I can’t thank the kayakers enough for saving our lives and hope no one experiences what happened to us yesterday."
But even then ... I don't think my preparations would have prevented this incident from occurring. The lesson about donning a life jacket FIRST if you have to enter the water to rescue someone is really good advice ... if not wearing one beforehand that is.
==============================================
June 19th 2010 the scariest day of my life
"June 19th 2010 did not start out like an ordinary day and it certainly did not end like one. At 1:30am, a soon to be HubSpot candidate (I’ve been trying to recruit him) met me at the boat for early morning fishing - the company was good, the fishing not so great, despite our theory of the incoming tide producing big fish right around false dawn.
Before we called it quits we ran into Tom, a fishing friend who weeks earlier had saved 2 lives in the river after 8 people were swept into the strong current off the point, one person did not make it. 3 people have died in this river this year. We got back to the docks, said my goodbyes to my guest and then took a powernap on the boat waiting for my wife and her grandmother to arrive around mid-day. When they arrived at the boat we loaded it up with food, drinks and the BBQ, anticipating a great day on the water with temperatures approaching 90 degrees. We left the docks and headed for the flats to anchor up and enjoy the beautiful day on the water.
The wind was strong at 15 knots and the boat traffic was what you’d expect on a beautiful summer day and after a couple of hours we decided to head up river and anchor off a small island, figuring there would be less wind and boat traffic, making grilling and eating more enjoyable. 20-minutes later we arrived at our destination. I anchored the boat and chilled out for a bit.
An hour went by and it was getting close to BBQ time but before dinner I decided to go for a quick swim. I proceeded to climb on top of the boats hard top and listened to my wife’s grandmother egg me on to jump off. A couple of seconds later I was in the 70-degree water and enjoying my swim. It was an incoming tide and the current was flowing at a good clip and it took a little but not a lot of effort getting back to the boat. Before setting up the BBQ I went back on top of the hard top to dry off and chill out on a beanbag.
Several minutes later my wife decided to hang off the side of the boat, dipping her legs in the water. This was unusual behavior for her as she does not know how to swim and even when we are a the beach, anchored up on the sand bar in 3-feet of water, she never goes in. A second later she had lost her grip on the side of the boat and was fully emerged in the water. I was a bit alarmed she was in the water but thought she’d be able to grab onto the grab handle on the swim platform just a few feet away. This was not the case.
The current took her past the swim platform and she went under water for at least a second. I immediately jumped down off the hard top and tried to throw her a line. She did not see the line and I do not believe she would have been able to get to it unless it hit her off the head, which it did not. At this point in time she was a good 15-feet away from the boat, drifting in the current and trying her best to keep her head above water. My guess is 5-seconds had passed from the time she lost her grip on the side of the boat until the point where she was 15-feet from the boat.
Nothing was going through my head other than figuring out a way to save my wife’s life. I immediately jumped in to save her knowing my lifeguard training from 20-years ago should come in handy. It took a few seconds for me to get to her and when I did we were a good 60-feet from the boat and drifting with the current, approximately 100-feet from shore and drifting parallel to land.
I threw my arm across her chest and proceeded to keep her head above water and trying my best to swim toward the boat. After 30-seconds of trying we were not making any headway and I became exhausted trying to hold her up, fight the current and keep my head above water. I knew the situation was going from bad to worse.
I told her our only chance was to not fight the current and swim to shore which we started to do except the current wanted to take us parallel to shore making it tough but not impossible to eventually get there. The big problem was that I was exhausted and she was still having a tough time keeping her head above water, despite my efforts to hold her up and I started to cramp up like I had never felt before. My legs cramped and my chest cramped, making it difficult to breathe deep breaths. Even sitting here Sunday night writing this I have yet to completely catch my breath. The situation had now gone from bad to worse to life threatening.
I scanned the horizon and noticed a couple of kayakers up river (down current) and began to yell and wave my arm knowing they were our only chance for survival. They noticed us and sprang into immediate action fighting the current and making their way toward us. It could not have been more than 2-minutes for them to reach us but during that time we were having a tough time just keeping our heads above water - we were clearly running out of time.
The kayakers arrived and we grabbed the sides of their kayaks, hanging on for dear life. The woman kayaker had a life jacket on her kayak and we quickly got it on my wife. We then hung on to the back of the kayaks and they proceeded to take us to the boat. After a few minutes of paddling we were not making headway against the current (by this time it was most likely maximum flow) so the male kayaker dragging my wife took her to shore and the female kayaker tried her best to get me to the boat, still not working though. By this time a couple of jet skiers were passing by and I waved them down. They made their way to us and I hopped on the back of one of them and we headed for shore to pick up my wife.
Less than 5-minutes later we were back at the boat and made our way off the jet ski and onto the boat, handed the kayaker the life vest back and thanked everyone for their kindness and quick thinking. If it had not been for the kayakers I’m not sure I’d be here writing this today. We hung out on the boat for a couple of hours trying to calm our nerves which was easier said than done and clearly an emotional time for the 3 of us.
But by this time the tide was at full high and the current had gone slack showing no signs of the raging current which had been present just hours before. For the first time in my life I think I was knocking on deaths door and my wife will tell you the door had opened for her as she ingested water though her nose and mouth when she went under. But like a good Martini - we were shaken - but lived to tell about the ordeal, although it still seems so surreal.
For my fellow boating friends I have a few words of wisdom and pray you will never go through what my wife and I went through (or her poor grandmother who helplessly witnessed the entire thing) the first being keep your throw cushion in a handy place every time you are on the boat.
Next is keeping your VHF radio on at all times and show everyone guest on your boat how to operate your VHF. If someone goes in the water immediately throw the person the throw cushion even if they can’t get to it the cushion will be in the water should you jump it. You can always swim to the cushion and bring it over to the person who fell in.
Next bit of advice is if someone does fall in and if you must go in after them (I do not recommend this unless you are a trained lifeguard or a strong swimmer) please, please, please do not make the mistake I made and just jump in. Please put on a life vest first! If we had either a throw cushion in the water or if I had thrown on a life vest it would have been only an inconvenience as the current could have drifted us for hours, but the chance for drowning would have been eliminated. We have 10 life jackets on the boat (had purchased 4 new jackets just this week) yet none were taken out.
Next bit of advice is if someone goes in the water, don’t ever misjudge the current thinking everything will be OK if someone goes in the water – hail the Coast Guard on the VHF. I’d rather explain to the CG that someone fell in and we saved them before they arrived, rather than to be in a helpless situation with absolutely no one around. If the kayakers were not on the scene then at least the CG would have eventually made their way to us, hopefully before it was too late.
Everyone on the boat should be wearing a life jacket although this is in many instances easier said than done. If people are not wearing them then at the very least have them handy in case of an emergency.
Mine are stowed in one locker in the cockpit with several more in the cabin convenient and out of the way but that’s part of the problem … they were not clearly visible and had they been I would have likely grabbed one during the ordeal. When an accident is unfolding in front of you believe me, you have no time to think and decisions are made subconsciously and in micro seconds.
I can’t thank the kayakers enough for saving our lives and hope no one experiences what happened to us yesterday."
