HMS Bounty and Hurricane Sandy

**Flyer69** · October 28th, 2012, 02:13 PM

Wow.

http://forum.woodenboat.com/showthre...03#post3577003

**Bayrunner** · October 28th, 2012, 04:58 PM

Sure lets take a wooden hulled sailing ship out into a hurricane, whats the worse that could happen?

**Flyer69** · October 28th, 2012, 05:10 PM

Oh but you see it's a sailing school vessel.

Fully seasoned crew ready for anything.

**Flyer69** · October 28th, 2012, 08:37 PM

From their Facebook page:

[quote]
Bounty Update 10/28 2012 11PM EST

One of Bounty's generators has failed....they are taking on more water than they would like.

THE CREW AND BOUNTY ARE SAFE.....

At 2118 hrs The Coast Guard issued an Urgent Marine Information Broadcast for the HMS Bounty taking on water 90 miles SE of Cape Hatteras, with 15+ people aboard....THAT HAS BEEN RESCINDED...

Tracie is in contact with the Coast Guard at this very moment and is closely monitoring the situation.
Tracie has also spoken to Captain Robin who confirmed that the Bounty and crew are safe.

The Captain will await till morning to determine if Bounty is in need of any assistance.
/[quote]

**ryanwood86** · October 28th, 2012, 09:30 PM

Guess the captain needs a sea story

**Traitor Yankee** · October 28th, 2012, 10:13 PM

I've got a friend on there........

**USMM707** · October 28th, 2012, 11:51 PM

They actually left during a hurricane ? The captain is an idiot and should lose is license if that is the case. Needlessly endagering 14 other lives...very bad decision!!

**ryanwood86** · October 29th, 2012, 12:03 AM

All I can say is pray for them. My local news station reported they sent out a mayday and have lost all propulsion...

http://wtkr.com/2012/10/29/coast-gua...near-hatteras/

**USMM707** · October 29th, 2012, 12:39 AM

I will be praying for them througout watch this morning. Perhaps the captain should stay onboard when they are rescued. Just kidding, but he should never be allowed command of another vessel for the rest of his days!

**sternup** · October 29th, 2012, 02:04 AM

me?...duck into the Virginia Capes for a day or so...ride it out behind Cape Charles...

**USMM707** · October 29th, 2012, 03:04 AM

Update 7 minutes ago from CBC news. Abandoning ship!! CG working on rescue ideas, C130 on scene. I want to see this Fucking cPtain crucified!!!!

**Flyer69** · October 29th, 2012, 04:24 AM

This captain should be in jail.

**c.captain** · October 29th, 2012, 04:39 AM

Originally Posted by Flyer69

This captain should be in jail.

Indeed, if he survives he needs to be tried and hopefully convicted of reckless endangerment leading to manslaughter if others die of course.

In looking at the track from the woodenboat website, I suspect that what this clown was thinking was that if he maintained being on the west (good) side of the storm, that he'd have favorable winds throughout and a following sea to ride. Seems fine on paper, but a ship's hull works harder in a following sea that a head sea because they corkscrew so violently. I suspect that the hull worked so hard for so long that all the seams have sprung and that was that.

It is a seastory that I am not proud to tell but the greatest mistake I ever made as a master was to take the crab processor GALAXY out into the Gulf of Alaska with a forecast for storm force winds believing that since they were to be on our stern, that there'd not be a problem. That we'd get a nice push to our designation. Never have I experienced a worse day and a half on a vessel with steady rolling to 50 degrees. How easily something could have gone wrong aboard in such conditions such as a fire and conditions being what they were, there'd have been no survivors. I should have been fired for taking such a massive and unwarranted risk to the lives of 65 persons aboard. As it was, I learned a very valuable lesson and since have always been much more mindful of making decisions regarding weather and the consequences of challenging the wind and sea.

**Flyer69** · October 29th, 2012, 04:47 AM

Originally Posted by c.captain

Indeed, if he survives he needs to be tried and hopefully convicted of reckless endangerment leading to manslaughter if others die of course.

In looking at the track from the woodenboat website, I suspect that what this clown was thinking was that if he maintained being on the west (good) side of the storm, that he'd have favorable winds throughout and a following sea to ride. Seems fine on paper, but a ship's hull works harder in a following sea that a head sea because they corkscrew so violently. I suspect that the hull worked so hard for so long that all the seams have sprung and that was that.

It is a seastory that I am not proud to tell but the greatest mistake I ever made as a master was to take the crab processor GALAXY out into the Gulf of Alaska with a forecast for storm force winds believing that since they were to be on our stern, that there'd not be a problem. That we'd get a nice push to our designation. Never have I experienced a worse day and a half on a vessel with steady rolling to 50 degrees. How easily something could have gone wrong aboard in such conditions such as a fire and conditions being what they were, there'd have been no survivors. I should have been fired for taking such a massive and unwarranted risk to the lives of 65 persons aboard. As it was, I learned a very valuable lesson and since have always been much more mindful of making decisions regarding weather and the consequences of challenging the wind and sea.

Scudding around into the navigable semicircle is a good tactic, and can produce an exhilarating sail, I did the same thing out in the middle of the atlantic while sailing from Bermuda to the Azores with Hurricane Isadore in 1990.

This tactic doesn't work so well when Cape Hatteras is on your course line.

**Traitor Yankee** · October 29th, 2012, 04:58 AM

The praise people are heaping on the captain and saying he made the right choice on the bounty's Facebook page makes me sick. One went so far regardless of the outcome she would have never weathered the record storm surge dockside in new London. WHO CARES! She sinks at the dock its a loss but it still doesn't put 17 people 100 miles offshore in a 60 knot blow. The fact that people still make decisions like this, especially after incidents like the loss of the schooner Phantome baffles me.

I am not surprised either that she started taking on water. She just came off the railway at Boothbay, and after seeing the mess they made of the refit of the schooner Shenandoah in 07, I would be quite wary of putting to sea in anything they did work on.

**cappy208** · October 29th, 2012, 05:25 AM

The Idiot aboard ( I am somewhat reluctant to call him 'the Master') posted a pretty interesting note on Saturday.
It read something like this: " we are heading out, some would call this wrong. It is a calculated risk".

Well buck-o me thinks you have a different set of calculators than a prudent seaman! And for him to post such a dumb statement shows he was wrestling with the prudence of this decision and trying to justify it.

**mb05j** · October 29th, 2012, 05:37 AM

I sailed on bounty for three years. From what I've heard, the seas are 18 feet with 40 knots of wind. That is par for the course. She's been through much worse I can assure you. From all accounts, the ship lost bilge pumps. Captain walbridge has been the master for twenty years. I trust his judgement.

**mb05j** · October 29th, 2012, 05:39 AM

Originally Posted by cappy208

The Idiot aboard ( I am somewhat reluctant to call him 'the Master') posted a pretty interesting note on Saturday.
It read something like this: " we are heading out, some would call this wrong. It is a calculated risk".

Well buck-o me thinks you have a different set of calculators than a prudent seaman! And for him to post such a dumb statement shows he was wrestling with the prudence of this decision and trying to justify it.

The captain did not write that. He doesn't post on social media I can assure you.

**mb05j** · October 29th, 2012, 05:52 AM

Let me also add that the crew are all paid. There are no trainees on board. Further more, I know the captain and chief mate are very prudent and consummate seamen. These are not a bunch of "yachties" looking for an adrenaline rush.

**c.captain** · October 29th, 2012, 05:54 AM

Originally Posted by mb05j

I sailed on bounty for three years. From what I've heard, the seas are 18 feet with 40 knots of wind. That is par for the course. She's been through much worse I can assure you. From all accounts, the ship lost bilge pumps. Captain walbridge has been the master for twenty years. I trust his judgement.

all may be so but his calculated risk failed and he did not have to depart just like I did not have to go out of Cape Spencer into the GoA that evening. My company would have been just fine with me waiting for the wx to pass rather that to take the calculated risk I took. I did not fear that my ship could not safely take the seas but I did not leave a margin should something so wrong. The difference was I got lucky and we made it through that ordeal with no damage but later I found out many people aboard felt that was going to be the last night of their lives. I felt shame hearing that...it proved a massive failure of judgement on my part even though we made it.

This decision to sail into a severe storm when not necessary was criminal recklessness. Right now though I pray all survive.