Your boat can sink too
Posted: Thu Oct 29, 2020 7:32 am
Just a reminder on cracked hulls and other things that can cause a boat to sink ...
https://www.facebook.com/AustralianMari ... 017090610/
This incident off the NT's Dundee in September reminded me of a similar event that happened to a mate wide of Dundee years ago, his hull cracked and the boat was only saved because they were running with another boat, and it was only bailing constantly with a bucket while under tow that got the boat back to the ramp.
Then there was a dinghy that caught fire off Dundee years ago, leaving two fellas in the water for quite a long time, and the story on here about Dick Pasfield and his son, they had a hull crack off the remote Kimberley coast, they fixed it with melted lead sinkers and made it home
The boat from the above AMSA-linked incident looked like a relatively new hull and in good nick. I don't know what caused the sinking but it doesn't matter - electrolysis, cracks, poor transducer mounts or other mods, forgotten bungs, a submerged log or shipping container, Moby Dick or even just a sudden storm can do the job.
In the NT, tying up in a river during big tides can lead to boats getting hung on the bank or tipping sideways and sinking. Big storms can also fill dinghies with a lot of water - an auto bilge pump is a good investment.
If you put flotation under a timber deck be sure the deck is screwed down well or it might just pop off if the boat sinks.
Point of post - regularly check boat, have safety gear in good order, don't have life jackets in some hard-to-reach spot, and don't assume a newish boat won't sink.
Pretty amazing that the boat was actually retrieved after the sinking, what a job that would have been.
And no one was hurt, but a story to tell for the rest of their days
https://www.facebook.com/AustralianMari ... 017090610/
This incident off the NT's Dundee in September reminded me of a similar event that happened to a mate wide of Dundee years ago, his hull cracked and the boat was only saved because they were running with another boat, and it was only bailing constantly with a bucket while under tow that got the boat back to the ramp.
Then there was a dinghy that caught fire off Dundee years ago, leaving two fellas in the water for quite a long time, and the story on here about Dick Pasfield and his son, they had a hull crack off the remote Kimberley coast, they fixed it with melted lead sinkers and made it home
The boat from the above AMSA-linked incident looked like a relatively new hull and in good nick. I don't know what caused the sinking but it doesn't matter - electrolysis, cracks, poor transducer mounts or other mods, forgotten bungs, a submerged log or shipping container, Moby Dick or even just a sudden storm can do the job.
In the NT, tying up in a river during big tides can lead to boats getting hung on the bank or tipping sideways and sinking. Big storms can also fill dinghies with a lot of water - an auto bilge pump is a good investment.
If you put flotation under a timber deck be sure the deck is screwed down well or it might just pop off if the boat sinks.
Point of post - regularly check boat, have safety gear in good order, don't have life jackets in some hard-to-reach spot, and don't assume a newish boat won't sink.
Pretty amazing that the boat was actually retrieved after the sinking, what a job that would have been.
And no one was hurt, but a story to tell for the rest of their days