Race to Bermuda!
MOB -- Up Close and Personal
Many of you may have already read this discussion under the MOB thread but it seems like a great way for us all to focus again on this topic before we go out to race. It is one of those classic there but for the grace of god stories all all of us can probably relate to. Thanks to Eric Wiberg for the contribution. Let's all stay in the boat!
I was lost overboard 100 miles south of Block Island on Oct. 18, 1998, in a falling dusk, a snowstorm, and gusts over 30 knots with a 3-5' swell. I was in the water for only 16 minutes and "Cruising World" Passage Notes featured the post-mortem. My only contribution is to say that when the Mate tried to free all the fancy MOB flags and even simple liferings, the MOB module's handle had frayed through and would not open and other gear was lashed so tight it was useless. Also as an insecure young captain I had not taught the Mate and Crew how to start the engine or do a proper MOB drill, which very nearly cost me my life. They found me almost by accident but they did find me. Subsequent research on MOBs in water of that temperature (about 55 degrees F) evidences that the chances of survival are only about 15-20 minutes. As a former national champ. swimmer I knew enough to stop moving, cross my arms, expend as little energy, cling to a horseshoe that was finally thrown to me, and keep screaming (I was in a pair of boxers and hypothermia was setting in). The other advice would be
1 DON'T PANIC - the Mate panicked and the crew had to slap him in the face
2 - forget orthodoxy if you can save the person HOWEVER YOU DO IT (they bumbled along but managed to get me by backing down on me against flapping sails after they had sailed passed me)
3 - don't worry about rigging a sling if you haven't done so - with the adrenelin going I was plucked out of the water by hand
4 - THROW ANYTHYING in the water - jerry cans, seat cushions, gas tanks, LPG tanks sail cover, anything at all that will help you find and keep a visual on the person
5 - KEEP SEARCHING - people can survive well beyond the statistical average, don't give up
6 - wear a personal EPIRP if you can, or at least a light, and a whistle of some sort - the sound signals help a lot - I joke that "I lost my voice and saved my life".
7 - for the MOB, keep up hope, try to stay rational and calm. I went through several psychological stages:
a) resignation as in "oh boy, here I go" on entering the water
b) shock when I hit the cold water and started screaming
c) anger that the crew should figure out how to get me faster
d) fear - cold fear when I saw them sailing away
e) utter and irredeemably bleak sadness and loneliness when alone with just the sound of waves
f) begging - to be rescued, forgiven, remembered, etc. - also bargaining ("if I survive all I want is a warm bed" - it cured me of insomnia!)
g) anger again that the boat came back but didn't reach me
h) relief when I realized they might just get me
i) gratitude
j) exhaustion
k) numbing cold
I recovered well enough after 2 hours under a blanket to stand watch, etc. The best weapon I had was anger to keep me focussed and thinking. Also, there is an 'after drop' effect where if you stand up for too long after a rescue the cold blood from your extremeties is forced to your heart from feet and hands, and overwhelms your heart leading to cardiac arrest and death. To avoid this it is recommended the victim/MOB be laid down horizontally and slowly have their temp. brought back up. I think other crew lying next to the victim naked or semi naked is very effective - WAR BABY had to do that when their skipper (Jim) was lost overboard in the 1990 Newport Race.
Hope it never happens to you! The best strategy is to avoid becoming a MOB because in most likelihood you will become DOA or KIA as well. I was extremely, extremely lucky.
PS I was knocked over by the boom - a tiny, tooth-size fitting between the main sheet traveller block and the sheet parted, because too much pressure was on the main sheet and not enough pressure was taken off the topping lift, leading to a 'weakest point' which in this case was fatigued metal which on inspection showed signs of rust. Remember to take off the topping lift if trimming with electric winches!
Sincerely, Eric
I was lost overboard 100 miles south of Block Island on Oct. 18, 1998, in a falling dusk, a snowstorm, and gusts over 30 knots with a 3-5' swell. I was in the water for only 16 minutes and "Cruising World" Passage Notes featured the post-mortem. My only contribution is to say that when the Mate tried to free all the fancy MOB flags and even simple liferings, the MOB module's handle had frayed through and would not open and other gear was lashed so tight it was useless. Also as an insecure young captain I had not taught the Mate and Crew how to start the engine or do a proper MOB drill, which very nearly cost me my life. They found me almost by accident but they did find me. Subsequent research on MOBs in water of that temperature (about 55 degrees F) evidences that the chances of survival are only about 15-20 minutes. As a former national champ. swimmer I knew enough to stop moving, cross my arms, expend as little energy, cling to a horseshoe that was finally thrown to me, and keep screaming (I was in a pair of boxers and hypothermia was setting in). The other advice would be
1 DON'T PANIC - the Mate panicked and the crew had to slap him in the face
2 - forget orthodoxy if you can save the person HOWEVER YOU DO IT (they bumbled along but managed to get me by backing down on me against flapping sails after they had sailed passed me)
3 - don't worry about rigging a sling if you haven't done so - with the adrenelin going I was plucked out of the water by hand
4 - THROW ANYTHYING in the water - jerry cans, seat cushions, gas tanks, LPG tanks sail cover, anything at all that will help you find and keep a visual on the person
5 - KEEP SEARCHING - people can survive well beyond the statistical average, don't give up
6 - wear a personal EPIRP if you can, or at least a light, and a whistle of some sort - the sound signals help a lot - I joke that "I lost my voice and saved my life".
7 - for the MOB, keep up hope, try to stay rational and calm. I went through several psychological stages:
a) resignation as in "oh boy, here I go" on entering the water
b) shock when I hit the cold water and started screaming
c) anger that the crew should figure out how to get me faster
d) fear - cold fear when I saw them sailing away
e) utter and irredeemably bleak sadness and loneliness when alone with just the sound of waves
f) begging - to be rescued, forgiven, remembered, etc. - also bargaining ("if I survive all I want is a warm bed" - it cured me of insomnia!)
g) anger again that the boat came back but didn't reach me
h) relief when I realized they might just get me
i) gratitude
j) exhaustion
k) numbing cold
I recovered well enough after 2 hours under a blanket to stand watch, etc. The best weapon I had was anger to keep me focussed and thinking. Also, there is an 'after drop' effect where if you stand up for too long after a rescue the cold blood from your extremeties is forced to your heart from feet and hands, and overwhelms your heart leading to cardiac arrest and death. To avoid this it is recommended the victim/MOB be laid down horizontally and slowly have their temp. brought back up. I think other crew lying next to the victim naked or semi naked is very effective - WAR BABY had to do that when their skipper (Jim) was lost overboard in the 1990 Newport Race.
Hope it never happens to you! The best strategy is to avoid becoming a MOB because in most likelihood you will become DOA or KIA as well. I was extremely, extremely lucky.
PS I was knocked over by the boom - a tiny, tooth-size fitting between the main sheet traveller block and the sheet parted, because too much pressure was on the main sheet and not enough pressure was taken off the topping lift, leading to a 'weakest point' which in this case was fatigued metal which on inspection showed signs of rust. Remember to take off the topping lift if trimming with electric winches!
Sincerely, Eric
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