Freak boating accident

[PortTobacco II]

When I hear of freak boating accidents, I try to think about what choices the boaters made that potentially caused the accident. OF COURSE other than drinking too much or speed. I try learn from what caused the freak boat accident.
This past weekend my friend, wife, and couple other folks where anchored on the Potomac River. They had bow anchor and a stern anchor. When they were leaving my friend pulled up the bow anchor and forgot he pull out the a 20lb stern anchor. He gunned it when he was leaving and immediately realized something was wrong so put it back in to neutral quickly. At that point the anchor shot out of the water, the line wrapped around one persons neck, the anchor slammed into my friends upper back knocking him out briefly. Thank God he was standing up or it would hit him in the head. The person who got the line around the neck survived.

Just scary stuff. Wife is always trying to get me to leave out box anchor unsecured up the bow area. She is like "we are just gonna put out again why do we have to secure it?" After my friends accident, I don't think she will argue.

BE SAFE OUT There FOLKS!!

 

[sunbyrned]

Wow!! Good to know. Thanks for sharing.

 

[anmut]

I agree - between the sun, the distractions of friends and family, and alcohol, accidents are always on the horizon for all of us. I tell myself to just "slow down" when doing anything boat related. Launching/recovering/water sports/docking/etc. - just slow down and process. My biggest issues in years of boating have always happened when we're in a rush.

 

[minn19]

Yikes, no good, glad everyone escaped alive/able to fully recover.

I think of similar things as well and worry a lot when I have my kid/others in the water swimming or on tubes/wakeboard. I'm always scanning for erratic/drunk boaters and jet skis of course that don't think boating rules apply to them. I still think it is insane that we let 13 year olds in my state drive jet skis that are nearly as fast and powerful as organ donor crotch rockets.

 

[Brad460]

Holy crap! This could have been bad!

I never just “gun it” when pulling away from anchoring. Leaving the anchor out was an honest mistake...”gunning it” is a dumb azz move...

 

[HangOutdoors]

I'm always scanning for erratic/drunk boaters and jet skis of course that don't think boating rules apply to them. I still think it is insane that we let 13 year olds in my state drive jet skis that are nearly as fast and powerful as organ donor crotch rockets.

Man. I totally agree. You just don't want to get me started..... I didn't think i had temper, but I found it when it comes to these F'in idiots and my family's safety!

 

[Scottintexas]

Thanks for the reminder

 

[minn19]

Man. I totally agree. You just don't want to get me started..... I didn't think i had temper, but I found it when it comes to these F'in idiots and my family's safety!

We live on a lake and it is one of the busier recreational lakes in the area on a normal summer weekend. Of course it was a zoo on the 4th. My daughter really wanted me to take her and her friends out tubing that day, but I had to disappoint her and told her/them no. Sometimes it just isn't worth it from a safety standpoint IMO.

 

[PortTobacco II]

Holy crap! This could have been bad!

I never just “gun it” when pulling away from anchoring. Leaving the anchor out was an honest mistake...”gunning it” is a dumb azz move...

That is a good protocol to have. Sometimes I gun and sometimes I don't.

 

[Robo]

I forgot to pull my anchor one day .I slowly pulled out anchor never reset and almost hit my kids on the tube thank God no one got hurt .it is easy to forget small things

 

[Brad460]

That is a good protocol to have. Sometimes I gun and sometimes I don't.

Mostly I do that to not create waves for everyone anchored...but now I have another reason.

 

[rkluck]

Wow I am glad nobody got seriously hurt! That can't be a good thing. I can't imagine my anchor line pulling up like that. That is many feet away and down in the water. Crap sometimes I struggled to get the anchor up. How in the world did it fly up, maybe 20+ fee at least, go around a neck and hit someone standing in the boat. Maybe I just put mine out more than most. I can see making a mistake and maybe gunning it. I usually anchor in coves so we don't gun it we just cruise out. I would always check everything and that people were secure before I took off. I learned the hard way people fall down. The thing I usually struggled with was the ladder. That was so easy to forget especially when swapping tubers, waterboards etc. and you are just floating in the middle of the lake! In my older boat I had to remover the plugs too! Opps forgot that too! HA!

 

[ripler]

Wow, that's scary and an easy mistake to make. I forgot to pull the bow anchor one day and luckily the rope was long enough for the anchor to go past the stern, the only thing that got damaged was my depth gauge from the rope.

Now when I have the bow anchor out I always leave the anchor locker door open as an easy reminder.

 

[ctyke]

That is scary. I found routine is best when doing things around the boat. Get in, check out oil/engines, turn on blowers, load boat, etc etc.

When coming off anchor, start at the back, pull in toys, put up ladder, secure inside stuff, turn on blower, grab anchor.. Always back to front before I start engines. If i need to start engines before moving, I have someone else handle that while I pull the anchor. I've done it this way for so long that I don't even think about it, but new boaters should have a checklist. I hope never end up doing what happened here.

 

[Andisimose]

That is scary. I found routine is best when doing things around the boat. Get in, check out oil/engines, turn on blowers, load boat, etc etc.

When coming off anchor, start at the back, pull in toys, put up ladder, secure inside stuff, turn on blower, grab anchor.. Always back to front before I start engines. If i need to start engines before moving, I have someone else handle that while I pull the anchor. I've done it this way for so long that I don't even think about it, but new boaters should have a checklist. I hope never end up doing what happened here.

Man, do I wish I had a ladder light. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve turned the engines on and gone “crap the ladder”

 

[ctyke]

Man, do I wish I had a ladder light. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve turned the engines on and gone “crap the ladder”

That should be part of the safety lock out for the engine, ladder not in, engines don't start. Saw a guy last weekend putting through the floating area with his front ladder deployed almost bent to the point of hitting his hull (not a Yamaha).

 

[Crob83]

Man, do I wish I had a ladder light. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve turned the engines on and gone “crap the ladder”

Don't feel bad I was going like 40 last weekend, and happened to look back and I was like why does the jet spray look so weird. The damn ladder was dragging thru the water deflecting the spray

 

[PortTobacco II]

Wow I am glad nobody got seriously hurt! That can't be a good thing. I can't imagine my anchor line pulling up like that. That is many feet away and down in the water. Crap sometimes I struggled to get the anchor up. How in the world did it fly up, maybe 20+ fee at least, go around a neck and hit someone standing in the boat. Maybe I just put mine out more than most. I can see making a mistake and maybe gunning it. I usually anchor in coves so we don't gun it we just cruise out. I would always check everything and that people were secure before I took off. I learned the hard way people fall down. The thing I usually struggled with was the ladder. That was so easy to forget especially when swapping tubers, waterboards etc. and you are just floating in the middle of the lake! In my older boat I had to remover the plugs too! Opps forgot that too! HA!

This was the anchor he had in the water on the rear of the boat. I think when he gunned it, the anchor line was stretched (building up energy in the line). Then when slowed down quickly the anchor line acted like a sling shot and launched the anchor (I think it was a mushroom style anchor)

 

[Bluewater272]

I think we forget the ladder almost 30% of the time we use it. I don't even like putting it out, so easy to get back on the deck without.

 

[rkluck]

Glad I keep that 6' of chain on mine!