Royal Air Force Yacht Club

A DISTRESSED SITUATION

 As recent new members and the owner of a motor boat, I was asked if I could write a contribution to the newsletter from a motor boater's position. The following is a true event which we unexpectedly found ourselves involved in.

Some years ago we used to do our boating in the Bristol Channel. A place feared by many for its severe tidal steams, especially on springs. The tidal range can be as much as 14 meters with the tide running at 8 knots, but apart from the muddy brown water, it can be an interesting area to explore!

We kept our boat, at that time a Sealine 305 in Bristol Marina, which is located near to the SS Great Britain. Set in the Floating Harbour in the centre of Bristol, it’s a vibrant place to be.

It was the August bank holiday weekend and weather was set reasonably fair so with our friends Colin & Joan we decided it would be great opportunity to visit Swansea.

We locked out of Bristol Harbour and travelled down the River Avon passing under the Clifton Suspension Bridge and made our way to Avon mouth. From here it was approximately 60 miles to Swansea. The seas where favourable, the sun shined and the visibility went on forever. We arrived some 3 hours later at the lock for Swansea marina.

We spent the weekend in Swansea enjoying the local beaches, the Yacht club and just chilling out.

On the Monday we left the marina for our return trip back to Bristol.  The wind was F4/5 SW, but with good visibility.  We headed south to avoid the shifting sands of Scarweather. Although there is a

north passage routing via Porthcawl and the infamous Nash passage off Nash point, which is not always a favourable place to be as strong cross currents can easily put you onto the rocks. We travelled though this at slack water once and the distance between the shore, on one side and the rocks the other, is about two boat widths. For this reason we preferred the longer route so avoiding any potential problems.

We rounded Scarweather sands and turned east heading for our home port. Another vessel was nearby travelling with us but some distance off. He was slightly smaller so was pleased to have some slightly (30ft) larger company. About a half hour or so past Scarweather , we heard a Mayday call.

“Mayday Mayday, Yacht Peapod, Yacht Peapod, I am held fast by my anchor and the tide is causing the boat to smash on the rocks” Mayday.

I could see him visually. He was approximately 3 miles away to the N East not far from Nash Point. There were four of us on board so I quickly assessed that we should go and see if we could assist, or at least stand too, until the RNLI arrived. We are all experienced boaters but not experienced rescuers. I called the coast guard and advised we would try and assist. Carefully watching the echo sounder and establishing our exact position, we had to cross the end of the sands and as we moved nearer to the yacht we could see the rocks.

We edged closer and closer to the 28/29ft yacht, bouncing up and down with the waves, held firm by the anchor and wedged in the underwater rocks. He was single handed and quite naturally was distressed. The coast guard kept reassuring him on the radio and advised him to wear his life jacket. Considering the situation, I think he had panicked and forgotten to put it on.

We approached the stern of the yacht and we decided that Colin would go forward with Julie to try to take a rope and Joan would sit next to me on the fly-bridge and read out the echo sounder.  I edged in further aware of the rocks to my port side but also aware of deeper water behind.

Colin shouted to the Yachtsman to throw us his line. He did this immediately, but sadly it was not attached to the yacht. Due to the conditions I had to withdraw and turn the boat around to re-position us before we could attempt this action again. During this time Joan kept reading out the depth from the sounder so I could at least try to establish the best position. I edged closer and Colin through the rope, which thankfully the yachtsman managed to secure to the stern of his vessel. I engaged the gears into reverse but nothing happened, the yacht was stuck firm! We soon realised the anchor was doing what it’s supposed to and despite his best efforts the poor guy could not release it. At this point Julie suggested, in her most nautical assertive fashion, that he should “Lose the xxxxxx anchor!!” Using a hammer he obeyed (without question) the order and smacked the capstan, losing all the chain and his anchor. I could now feel the yacht break free and was able to pull her clear into deeper water. We asked if his engine was functioning or did he want me to tow him further out, as we were uncertain of any damage there may have been to the hull.

He was satisfied his engine was okay and no evidence of any damage, so we released the tow.

We repositioned ourselves in calmer water and called the coast guard to advise him of the situation. Within minutes the RNLI in-shore Rib appeared. I can still see four helmets peering up at us and asking for our details. They checked over the yacht and we were release by the coast guard. We then continued on our passage back to Bristol. The coast guard asked the yacht Peapod to check in with them every hour as he made his return to Cardiff. Unfortunately he did not fully understand the request and kept advising the coast guard every 10 minutes – much to their frustration!

We arrived back at the lock in the Cumberland basin in Bristol. As we surfaced from the depths of the lock, the lock master informed us that the marina manger advises us to moor alongside his boat and not on our usual berth. Oh dear what have we done we thought? As we approached the marina large pieces of GRP where floating around the marina. In the corner, supported by two cranes were the remains of a large Catamaran – this boat was moored next to our berth. She has suffered a gas leak and exploded, completely destroying her. Thankfully nobody was injured as the owner was not aboard and luckily apart from blown out windows to nearby flats no other damage had been done. Of course had we have remained in Bristol that weekend – well perhaps rescuing Peapod was the preferred option!!

I discussed the rescue with the coast guard the following day. The yachtsman had been out for two weeks, single handed. The coast guard did not know why he decided to anchor where he did and that he didn't realise he was on a rising tide and perhaps releasing more chain would have eased the situation. It's most likely we believe, he panicked and being alone became distressed and confused.

The owner of the catamaran was a live aboard and lost everything. Last we heard he was struggling to gain compensation from his insurers.

Lessons learned from this event are, despite having an experienced crew, none of us had gained any rescue expertise. We worked well as a team and it is that effort that prevented us from becoming the casualty. The radio traffic during an emergency is considerable and at times difficult to respond to with all the action taking place. Know your limits. Had the weather been any worse, I doubt we could have assisted.  The moral of this event is to always expect the unexpected. We all regularly sail over the same piece of water and moor in the usual berth. It’s easy to become complacent – but you can never be certain it’s always the same as it was the last time you where there.

Eric & Julie

White lady