Boat Sunk In South Haven Salmon Fishing

[danthebuilder]

Happened on the 3rd. Definitely a must read.

http://www.glangler.com/_blog/Great_Lakes_Angler/post/MULL's_BLOG_Stupid,_Adrift_and_Thanking_God_for_a_Coleman_Cooler/

[Twill23]

Wow......

[salmonquest]

Holy cow. Really makes me re-evaluate my safety procedures for small boat fishing....or really any boat fishing.

[buster107]

God bless you guys. Glad you people are ok!!! Wow is right!!!

[CAC]

Thanks for posting this. First, thank God this occurred in July and not April or May when the surface temps were 47, and that everyone is ok. Secondly, it was well written. Thirdly, it is a reminder to check safety equipment even though we all do this each spring before the first trip. And, lastly it provides great education on what must be done immediately upon losing power in waves that can come over the transom.

[Priority1]

But just think, "This could never happen to any of us".

[GLF]

Glad to hear Dave, Jack, John, and Matt survived this mishap and are OK.

This is should be a wake up call to everyone. It doesn't matter who you are, you can end up in this situation. How many of us actually know how to use a flair? How many of us do a safety check with the crew before we leave the dock. I am guilty of not doing it myself. Heck.....95% of the people who went out with me did not even know where the flares were on my boat. I am not sure how many of them actually knew how to use the radio! Does your crew know what to do incase of an emergency? Every airline does a preflight walk through incase of emergency.....are we any different?

I have been in a similar situataion and we were taking waves over the back of the boat. How did it start? We took a wave over the back, and it swamped the outboard. Once the outboard was swamped, we were without motor. The lower unit is the lowest point in the water and acts like a drift sock. The bow swung around in the wind and the transom was left facing the waves. We continued taking waves over the back of the boat, and were almost to the point of no return when another boat hooked up to us and started towing us. A drift sock/sea anchor attached to the bow would have prevent the bow from swinging around and the transom facing the waves.

A drift sock/sea anchor is a must for a safety device on any boat.

Be careful out there. The Great Lakes are not a playground!

[Just Hook'n]

Awesome story and thank God the crew is ok.

Thank you for having the humility to share the story and teach us all a good lesson.