Ballina bar claims anotherone

[Knotpretty]

Well another boat rolled on the Ballina Bar today. Crew ok, boat yet to be salvaged. Local paper stated midweek the bars the best it has been in ages. Wake up pollies fix this mess before someone dies trying to catch a feed of fish. KP

[Jeremy]

Sorry to hear. Hope it was insured. What is it that you want the pollies to do? I reckon people need to take responsibility for their own actions more. I do not know the circumstances of this mishap, but crossing on the incoming tide, picking a day with small swell, going out in a 20 ft+ boat with plenty of power, having experience crossing the bar etc etc all minimise the risks associated with crossing a bar. I have been upside down on a bar myself and never blamed anyone else.

[mattooty]

Jeremy, we all want the pollies to give a tick to get the bar dredged. Yesterday was a pretty ok day at sea yet the bar is horrendous. It was a local bloke with plenty of experience and a more than capable craft. To the best of my knowledge he crossed a wave that stood up as a pressure wave as he crossed and sent the boat into a nose dive where his decky subsequently lost balance and fell in. When he rendered a rescue attempt the boat was then swamped from the ass end and flipped. Ballina Jet Boat rescue offered a prompt rescue and all's well with no injuries.
Every local professional fisherman (Line/trap boats as well as every trawler) along with the local contingency of amateurs have been lobbying to get the bar dredged to increase safety as it's a commercial port as well as an income generator (industry and tourism) and noone wants to sign off on it to get it done. It will take a death on the bar on a calm day to kick them into gear and even then they'll blame incompetency I'm sure.

[mattooty]

Just as an aside, the local rag reported today that the Ballina Jet Boat Rescue is to have it's rescue accreditation stripped and Ballina to be left with a single boat rescue from the Coast Guard. I can't remember the last time I saw the Coast Guard perform a rescue but saw the Jet Boat out twice on Sunday doing a tow as well as this rescue.
The Jet Boat often times will go out when the coast guard say they can't manage the swell.

http://www.northernstar.com.au/news/sinking-in-bureaucracy/2215620/

[wiz]

This is ridiculous.

Slowly but surely this country has become a place where rules are made to accommodate for the irresponsible, that grossly impact on the ability to achieve a goal that these so called rules were designed to improve.

These rules actually slow the procedure down in such a way that it practically negates the necessity to do the job as the bird has flown the coup.

The people that make these rules generally have no practical experience in the area that they are so called experts.