Important Boating Tip: When Boating, Do Not Open a Hatch on the Bottom of a Boat
I know about as much boating and boats as the next Sahara desert nomad … but I do know this – if you’re on a boat in the water, you do not open a hatch at the bottom of a boat … but apparently this is not common knowledge.
A $500,000 Port Authority patrol boat sank this month after a veteran police sergeant took the advice of a clueless civilian safety instructor — and opened a hatch while it was under water …
You can read the rest at the NY Post.
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4 October 2012
6 Comments
Tractors is so dumb!
well…30 minutes is a long time for a boat that size to sink. If the water came on so fast that they couldn’t just close the hatch immediately, then why did it take so long to sink? There has to be something they aren’t telling us.
Some multihull boats are designed with openings to the water, because they’re buoyancy is in the pontoons or side hulls – and they need access to the water for research or other random stuff. Sounds like they should have a warning label to idiot proof this one.
As a veteran “landlubber”, I have to ask an obvious question: Why was there even a hatch in the BOTTOM of the boat and if it really had a purpose, why wasn’t it secured ?
With all the redundant safety protocols required in our world, locking out an underwater hatch seems like a no-brainer (Sorry, “no-brain” was the cause of this mess, wasn’t it?)!
Glad no one was hurt, like the commenter on the NYP page said, they should have drilled holes in the boat to let the water drain out!
I’m just wondering at what point did this even sound like a good idea; and why did the other nine souls onboard not say anything.
🙄 Why would a veteran police sergeant take advice from a “clueless” civilian safety instructor?