Page 42 - CHIRP Annual Digest 2017

CHIRP Maritime

be tilted 45 degrees to obtain optimal reflection, and recom- requested a tow from the mouth of the river to his berth at
mends that the preferred orientation of mounting should be the yacht club. The club launched a RIB crewed and helmed
clearly marked on the reflector. by persons holding RYA Powerboat Level 2 and RYA Safety
Boat certificates to perform the tow. A considerable swell in
CHIRP Comment the entrance of the river had developed due to the ebbing
In addition to fitting a radar reflec- tide against a southerly wind. This resulted in the RIB and
tor, fitting a “transmit and receive” the yacht being pulled apart and back together with quite
AIS system is a prudent course of some force. The RIB became swamped and subsequently
action; especially if transiting busy capsized. The crew on the RIB entered the water, thus turn-
shipping areas. In any event, small ing off the engine with the kill-cord. Following their training
boaters should keep a very good they climbed on top of the overturned vessel which was still
lookout and not simply rely on tied alongside the yacht.
equipment to ensure they will be
seen – which, in all probability, they The helmsman of the yacht made a mayday call to the local
may not be in the sea clutter. coastguard and all persons were rescued from the RIB. The
Remember the Mk I eyeball is still the best collision avoid- RIB’s anchor had deployed upon capsizing so once the crew
ance device!!! had been rescued from the overturned vessel the yacht
helmsman released the RIB. However, due to continued
The above article was published in MFB 46 engine problems the skipper had difficulty in make headway
against the ebbing tide and deployed the anchor. This sub-
Article. 31 sequently dragged, resulting in the yacht being beached on
the shore. Rescue was safely coordinated by the rescue ser-
Tiller full of surprises vices stationed locally.

Dear CHIRP, All persons were given first aid for hypothermia, and sub-
I read with interest the report in Maritime FEEDBACK 45 sequently returned to the yacht club, where first aid obser-
where the reporter applied heat to a blocked pipe in order to vations continued. All persons, although wet and in shock,
help release a blockage. The sudden release of the clogged have made a full recovery from the incident.
material due to the residual pressure caused the blocked
material to hit the bulkhead. This reminded me of an inci- CHIRP Comment
dent when I needed to release a tiller bar that was corroded The Maritime Advisory Board commented that this report
to the rudder arm on a narrowboat. Unbeknown to anyone, demonstrates the value of reporting, and the need for clarifi-
the wooden handle at the other end of the tiller bar had cation of who should report, to whom, and when. It is impor-
somehow, over many years, allowed water to seep into the tant to recognise when there is an emergency and how to
hollow tiller bar. Using a blow torch I applied heat to the act accordingly i.e. contacting the rescue organisations that
seized joint and this unintentionally caused the residual exist worldwide. In this case, a position of relative safety
water to heat up, expand into steam and eventually caused rapidly became an emergency. The effective use of the “kill
the handle to blow out of the end of the tube, immediately cord” undoubtedly shortened the rescue timespan, and is a
followed by hot water and steam causing burns to the hands very positive aspect of the report.
and arm of my assistant.
It was also noted that the reference to hypothermia may
Reporter’s Lessons learned have been cold shock, which can necessitate separate treat-
Whilst I have never encountered or heard of anything like ment so expert assistance should always be sought.
this before, my message is always allow for the unexpected!
We now always drill a hole in the bottom of the tube first to The above article was published in MFB 49
see if water is in the tube before heating, plus it ensures the
pressure can’t increase.

The above article was published in MFB 46

Article. 32
Swamping of a RIB and
subsequent beaching of a yacht

OUTLINE: A yacht gets into trouble and requires assistance
but it all goes wrong.

What the Reporter told us:
We recently experienced an incident involving a yacht and
a rigid inflatable boat, (RIB), from our club. A yacht had
suffered engine problems while on passage. The skipper

41