>
> In the report I read on the Farallons drowning it was indicated that his
> inflatable life vest did not deploy. If you have to keep yourself afloat
in
> water that cold, your life expectancy is measured in minutes.
>
hi Dave,
>From what I heard from folks at Alameda Marina, that news report was wrong.
My rigger raced in that one and sailed his boat into the surf to tow a
disabled J24 away from the rocks on one of the islands. The deceased was a
friend and customer of my sailmaker.
This was the story at the memorial service. All the racers attended.
The skipper's PFD did indeed deploy. The water was 45 degrees or so. His
crewmate was able to climb back aboard, but the deceased was not and was
unconcious within 5 minutes. While the crewmate was climbing aboard, the
skipper was being dragged behind the boat at several knots speed on top of
the water at the end of his tether. The crewmate reeled him in using the
tether with great effort, tried to lift him aboard, but wasn't able to get
him up over the side. He was too weak from the cold and the effort.
By then (10 or 15 minutes elapsed time), the coast guard was alongside and
told the crewmate to let the tether out. The coast guard dropped a man
overboard, got the skipper secured in a sling and pulled him up. He never
regained conciousness and was DOA at the hospital.
Judy B.