Full speed at night... crash

[aussiefool]

lifted from the GCB web site

21Aug07
A CATAMARAN crashed at near full speed into a sandbar in the Broadwater last night, sending passengers 'flying' through the air and down stairs.
The grounding occurred about 7.30pm as more than 160 people sipped pre-dinner drinks on board the 32m MV 2000 catamaran.
The group, members of a printing association, had been en route to an awards night at Tipplers Resort on South Stradbroke Island.
Passenger Mike Rickens said the ship was travelling about 25 knots (46km/h) when it 'came to a sudden and violent stop' near Ephraim Island.
"Mate, we were all just enjoying the moment and the boat was going full speed," he said.
"We all had drinks in our hands and we went from going very, very fast to a halt in just seconds."
Mr Rickens said the impact was so violent people were airborne before smashing into the bar and poles and falling down the stairs between decks.
"It was a mess mate, an absolute mess," he said.
"There was broken glass everywhere and the passengers were screaming.
"It was very frightening and you just don't expect that sort of thing to happen.
"I had three people land on top of me so there were a lot of people with sore bones."
Four people were seriously injured in the accident, with ambulance crews hitching a ride on Volunteer Marine Rescue boats to reach the stricken vessel.
After being transferred to another boat, Mr Rickens saw the catamaran was 'well and truly high and dry'.
"It is sticking right up there," he said.
"The wavebreakers at the front were pointing skywards."
The multimillion-dollar catamaran is owned by Tall Ships which runs the 1300 Whales whale watching tours daily off the Coast.
At night the catamaran is used to take passengers to Tipplers Resort for drinks.
Those who were not injured in the accident were given the option of continuing to their party or returning to their rooms at the Sea World Resort where they had been staying during a three-day Australian Flexographic Technical Association conference.
About 30 people, who were too shaken and shocked to continue, were transported by ferry back to the resort.
One passenger, who was visiting from Melbourne, said: "I saw one woman fall down stairs and a few blokes popped their shoulders out.
"After the accident everyone, including the crew, were a little slow in reacting."
Volunteer Marine Rescue skipper Greg Turner said poor visibility and winds might have contributed to the crash.
"Certainly that would have played a role but there may be other factors as well," he said.
"As far as the rescue operation went it was very smooth and we just transferred passengers to water taxis and ferries for the rest of the trip.
"I am not sure about the salvage operation at this stage. It might be possible to refloat the ship on a higher tide."



mmmmm make you wonder why

[alleycat]

I sometimes get the willies driving the boat in near pitch black conditions, told a mate i was going to put headlights on the tinny and he reckons im getting soft lol.

[1lastcast]

SHIT !! it makes you wonder how an experienced skipper could let that happen .
I hope all the injured patrons and crew members have a speedy recovery its terrible to hear about these incidents.
My best wishes to everybody involved.
Peter

[bob f 57]

may as well have had stevie wonder in the crows nest ;D

hope everybody is ok though

[ashh]

......oops

[Fish Guts]

charter boat...................... what charter boat.....

[bayfisher]

Really does make you wonder why? Especially if this trip is done daily as by the sounds of the article.

Cheers Chris

[Dodgy_Back]

During the last few weeks I have seen a big cat travelling nowhere within the channel markers, I said to the bloke with me, that if they don't watch it they'll run aground !!

While I do feel sorry for those that were injured, I don't feel sad for the crew at all.!!!

How many times have those of us have been almost swamped by these large charter boats tear assing around leaving massive wakes behind them.

Hope they get a big repair bill and a few law suits.

Mick

[Foxy4]

Stevie Wonder could have probably done a much better job.

[PinHead]

During the last few weeks I have seen a big cat travelling nowhere within the channel markers, I said to the bloke with me, that if they don't watch it they'll run aground !!

While I do feel sorry for those that were injured, I don't feel sad for the crew at all.!!!

How many times have those of us have been almost swamped by these large charter boats tear assing around leaving massive wakes behind them.

Hope they get a big repair bill and a few law suits.

Mick

and all those Rivs etc and the sports cruisers..should ban the lot of them

[mikeyh]

Hey PinHead,
thats getting a bit severe isnt it? Not everyone in large planing boats are thoughtless, irresponsible wankers....although there are certainly heaps of them who have little regard for anyone except themselves and their bottle blonde birds....

[mikeyh]

On a more serious note,
best wishes to all who were injured as previously stated ...
It beggars belief in a large commercial vessel with everything that opens and shuts for survey and all the nav aids how this can ever happen....

[PinHead]

Hey PinHead,
thats getting a bit severe isnt it? Not everyone in large planing boats are thoughtless, irresponsible wankers....although there are certainly heaps of them who have little regard for anyone except themselves and their bottle blonde birds....

ban the lot I say..

[Blackened]

ban the lot I say..


lol, how about we just ban sandbars altogeather?

Dave

[seatime]

On a more serious note,
best wishes to all who were injured as previously stated ...
It beggars belief in a large commercial vessel with everything that opens and shuts for survey and all the nav aids how this can ever happen....

all those bells, whistles & fancy electronics don't command the boat, the skipper does :-/

[bastard]

You might have your wish pin head i hurd from a good source all boats 10 meters and over may be reduced to a 10 knot speed limit,its still in the process now,if it does happen your marina fees should drop because know one is going to store a boat somewere when they can only do ten knots.This is only in the broad water.

[STARBUG]

Volunteer Marine Rescue skipper Greg Turner said poor visibility and winds might have contributed to the crash.

I think the fact that we were travelling outside of the markers played a part. One bloke bust 3 ribs on impact with 4 other blokes, a lady who was on the stairs broke her collar bone, bodies were flying everywhere, lots of people were saying they were very sore with some large bruises and sore bits. Me, smashed my head on the upstairs window, smashed my phone, got a massive lump on my leg off one of the seats, bruised ribs/hip/shoulder - got a bandage on my hand, ice for my head, glass of red and went off to the party!!!!!!!

[STARBUG]

charter boat...................... what charter boat.....

I think it was more like....."sand bar.......what sand bar!!
The water at the impact point was less than a foot deep.

[marty+jojo]

poor vision?????? Ummmm G P S!!!!!!!!!!
DOHHHHHHH!

[tanglefoot]

Whoopsies ouch

[PinHead]

You might have your wish pin head i hurd from a good source all boats 10 meters and over may be reduced to a 10 knot speed limit,its still in the process now,if it does happen your marina fees should drop because know one is going to store a boat somewere when they can only do ten knots.This is only in the broad water.

that has been proposed for boat 15m and over...but I doubt it will happen..too many big hitters with the big boats.

[PinHead]

poor vision?????? Ummmm G P S!!!!!!!!!!
DOHHHHHHH!
I have hit a sandbar and the GPS showed I was in deep water..not too hard to miss a channel down there.

[PinHead]

Volunteer Marine Rescue skipper Greg Turner said poor visibility and winds might have contributed to the crash.

I think the fact that we were travelling outside of the markers played a part. One bloke bust 3 ribs on impact with 4 other blokes, a lady who was on the stairs broke her collar bone, bodies were flying everywhere, lots of people were saying they were very sore with some large bruises and sore bits. Me, smashed my head on the upstairs window, smashed my phone, got a massive lump on my leg off one of the seats, bruised ribs/hip/shoulder - got a bandage on my hand, ice for my head, glass of red and went off to the party!!!!!!!

that's the aussie way mate...don't let anything get in the way of enjoying yourself...the man deserves a medal.

[seatime]

Volunteer Marine Rescue skipper Greg Turner said poor visibility and winds might have contributed to the crash.

I think the fact that we were travelling outside of the markers played a part. One bloke bust 3 ribs on impact with 4 other blokes, a lady who was on the stairs broke her collar bone, bodies were flying everywhere, lots of people were saying they were very sore with some large bruises and sore bits. Me, smashed my head on the upstairs window, smashed my phone, got a massive lump on my leg off one of the seats, bruised ribs/hip/shoulder - got a bandage on my hand, ice for my head, glass of red and went off to the party!!!!!!!

what's the first thing you do in restricted (poor) visibility and adverse weather conditions?
slow down to a speed appropriate to the prevailing circumstances and conditions.
commercial pressures are another issue to be factored into the equation.

[charleville]

and all those Rivs etc and the sports cruisers..should ban the lot of them


Hehehe! ;D ;D ;D

[Hamish73]

night boating always keeps the adrenalin pumping.
Those 44 gallon drums out the river nearly claimed me once :o

[charleville]

night boating always keeps the adrenalin pumping.
Those 44 gallon drums out the river nearly claimed me once :o

What 44 gallon drums?

[Hamish73]

What 44 gallon drums?
they are used as buoys for anchor points I guess. a few in the white island entrace near where the tugs are, and another few out near the mouth on the southern side.

[charleville]

they are used as buoys for anchor points I guess. a few in the white island entrace near where the tugs are, and another few out near the mouth on the southern side.

Aha - so they are moored/anchored then.

I love night fishing. I would only go fishing at night if I could. In fact, in winter that is all the fishing that I do but the weather is not so great for night fishing in summer.

However, night boating does require a pretty sound knowledge of where everything is, gained in the daytime. It is not so bad coming back in the Bay at night because those big orange Port of Brisbane lights illuminate the path in front of you but it can be a bit daunting going out into the Bay away from those lights, especially if it is choppy.

[mikeyh]

Ah yes, my point exactly - that the skipper can hardly say I didnt see it. Tonight on the news they are saying "a navigational error" - thats a pretty good euphemism

[GAFYM]

Gelsec got it right.
What happened to the "Due Care"
And everyone knows that their is always discrepancis in GPS data (otherwise we would all be sitting on the same fishing spot)

[Sandman]

Has anyone got photoes of this unfourtunate grounding ? I missed all the news .

[Fish Guts]

Volunteer Marine Rescue skipper Greg Turner said poor visibility and winds might have contributed to the crash.

I think the fact that we were travelling outside of the markers played a part. One bloke bust 3 ribs on impact with 4 other blokes, a lady who was on the stairs broke her collar bone, bodies were flying everywhere, lots of people were saying they were very sore with some large bruises and sore bits. Me, smashed my head on the upstairs window, smashed my phone, got a massive lump on my leg off one of the seats, bruised ribs/hip/shoulder - got a bandage on my hand, ice for my head, glass of red and went off to the party!!!!!!!


how fast do you think the boat was going ? What did the captain say after the grounding ? did they tell you what was happening and what to do ?

cheers

fish guts

[Marlin_Mike]

what's the first thing you do in restricted (poor) visibility and adverse weather conditions?
slow down to a speed appropriate to the prevailing circumstances and conditions.
commercial pressures are another issue to be factored into the equation.


I have to agree with gelsec. SLOW DOWN due to the prevailing conditions at the time. Obviously the skipper didnt. Therefore. IMHO, say what you like, make up all the excuses, only one person to blame...........not conditions or moving sand banks,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

MIke

[Foxy4]

They reckon that the Sandbank shifted haha

[STARBUG]

how fast do you think the boat was going ? What did the captain say after the grounding ? did they tell you what was happening and what to do ?

cheers

fish guts

I think the boat was going at about 25 knots (??) but I have heard that it was going more like 60kmh (don't know how they relate). Didn't hear anybody say what had happened etc - just that we had hit a sandbar>:( . The blokes on the boat were pretty good with dealing with all of the injured (there was a lot of injured/shook-up people and only a couple of "boat people" on it). They were pretty much concerned with the injured and making sure that they were ok. Didn't hear anyone say what we were supposed to do - but most of us impacted on something and didn't feel like doing anything that anybody said anyway. Have had a few conversations with people in the industry and they were all commenting on their sore joints/bones/bruising/etc.
...........Then somebody said "those who want to go on, get off this boat and onto another" - so the majority of us (110+) got off that boat and went to the party!!;D

and NO - hasn't put me off boats one bit!!8-)

[PinHead]

my very reliable source informs me that the skipper was travelling in the correct areas...there were other circumstances involved..I cannot say anything more about that at the moment..more will be revealed later.

[captain rednut]

theres always more to the story! theres a lot of quick harsh words to be said about the people in charge! they have a huge responsibilty and i bet they wished it didnt happen either, can you only amagine how the skipper felt? good luck to him and the crew with the outcome cheers cr

[Fish Guts]

unless it was a control failure there is no excuse for it at all. does anyone know what part of the broadwater it actually came aground ? saw the boat in question when it was first launched in port douglas, its a lovely boat..least it wont need an antifoul for a few months.

[Blackened]

G'day

Starbug...... 60km/hr is roughly 32kts, Pretty quick, especially for a boat that size.........

Think outside the square, maybe the boat changed course momentarily to avoid collision with a smaller boat? Who knows, i'm sure it'll all come out in the end.

Dave

[minno]

Driving at night takes a lot of care. There are all sorts of things that can go wrong. Its a risk to plane at night, then again, fishing its self, is risky business. Some people say, fishermen are mad, I say, if you,re skilled in the art, plus have common sense, its like a dangerous job, if you don't know what you are doing, you are going to get hurt or killed. Just take your time with everything that you do and just don't bite off more than you can chew.



Minno

[Blaster Bretty]

Very Very strange that this huge vessel that travels this route on a routine basis should all of a sudden come a gutsa on a bloody sand bar,,, in the broady the bars are all well documented on paper and the cat's route should have been mapped out before hand and then adhered to.... maybe the skipper was one of these pisshead's that we often hear about that man the helm's of these giant pleasure craft's!!!

Bretty

[ashh]

It isnt hard to get of course and get into trouble, especially travelling at those speeds but its equally just as easy to throttle back and take your time.
Navigating the broadwater at night isnt hard to do, but when heading south towards surfers paradise, it is very easy to lose the channel marker lights amongst all the other lights from Surfers in the background. Its happen to me a few times.
Couple that with a bit of speed and a slight lack in concentration and you can come unstuck very quickly, especially in the broadwater.
All it takes is something like one unlit tinny that you come upon and have to take evasive action......
I do have GPS in my little tinny, but at night in the broadwater, I pretty much rely on using my own eyes, purely just for the above mentioned.

As the vessel was apparantly heading North away from surfers, with not much lighting in the background to distract from channel markers could indicate there was possibly a control failure......no matter what happened though, to have this incident occur, and even if you have all the latest fandangle navigation equipment, IMO travelling that fast in the broadwater at night, in a vessel that size, is just irresponsible and down right crazy.

Will be interesting to find out the exact cause.