Quote:
Originally Posted by 2Blackdogs
It was cloudy, but the visibility after midnight was fine for me. It was dark, but like it's always dark after midnight. Laconia Airport had three miles of visibility. The moon was full (Gibbous moon), and was overhead at 2AM. Posters at the BoaterEd.com forum are being very critical of operating this boat in fog. Those who witnessed conditions at the time know better.
And kudos to the doctor, the real hero at a time when heroes were needed.
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It was that very hard working doctor that stated what the conditions were when he bravely paddled out to help those in need. You've "insinuated" otherwise.
Enough of that.
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This is an emotionally charged event. It occurs shortly after a dumb law was passed, a law which does not pertain to this accident now. Two women are seriously injured, and a third is deceased. The emotional impact of this sad tragedy is one which we all hope we never know in our own families.
It's great for people to discuss the safety aspects of boating, since it is an activity with inherent risks. It's vitally important for everyone to follow the official investigation, since the skipper was an experienced boating person. Whatever went wrong, it serves notice to all of us that life can pass in a fleeting second, for a variety of reasons.
Hopefully, we can all learn something from yet another tragedy, and log it in our skipper's database. I think the majority of us know all the things that could have happened, which is why we don't discuss it now. It's a terrible thing to happen to families and friends, and from what I've read, these women have positively impacted many lives. Out of respect for the victims and the families, it think it would be nice to discuss the safety aspects of boating, and leave the personal and technical aspects of this particular case alone until the real facts come out.
If boating safety discussions can help save even one person from this type of accident, I think we'd be doing the victims and the families proud. I have it in my will that special donations be made to a local group specifically designed for on water instruction for new boaters. Not a bad idea in this case at all. No matter how old we get, there's not a skipper alive that doesn't have more to learn.