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Hurricane IRMA -

Discussion in 'General Yachting Discussion' started by YachtForums, Sep 5, 2017.

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  1. Capt J

    Capt J Senior Member

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    I cannot understand how a 92' motoryacht does not have a full time Captain. The work load of maintaining it, justifies at least 1 full time person if not 2.
  2. Capt Ralph

    Capt Ralph Senior Member

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    14 years ago, some storms came over Florida and hit Jax.
    A good TS strength by then but we had to anchor in the Ortega river. 3 big anchors out, lots of fat 1" rode, and of course, I slept thru them.
    Josie did wake me up when an abandoned snail bote was bearing down on us. Luck was with us, his anchor (if still attached) did not foul our rode.
    After that event, what else could I do; go back to sleep.

    If we were on the available docks then, We would of been smashed up like the causalities that did happen.

    TS strengh, we did very well. Cat?, who knows. But would be the pieces of a domino effect when the other ****** did not prepare for an afternoon shower.

    We had the same view in the Dry Tortugas 2 years ago. SFBs blowing past us every evening, just an evening storm.

    If I had no where to hide, I'd drop my big 3 again behind a kay or mound (any relief) and hang on. I'd shot-gun anybody who would want to try and anchor ahead of us.
    This is our home, only thing we have.

    We have been fortunate these last many years on the Huckins floating docks. Paul Sr assigned our slip himself. The best of all.
    Our friends at Huckins still put up with us.
    We are untouched since we've been here.

    I'm rambling,, back to point;
    Ralph mentioned anchoring. Well, in Lake Worth the majority of damage came from anchored boats that broke loose and hit boats well protected in marinas.
    I'd like to see the insurance companies come down of these SFBs hard. If uninsured, The state should automatically start a damage suit.
    Anchoring thru a storm is not a bad idea if done correctly. Wonder how many left their claims (wondering torpedoes) out there with 1/2" nylon and NOT prepped the boats for a storm. Easy bet,,,,, Nil...

    A drifting snail bote hit the A dock at the Ortega Landings. Took out the bows of three properly prepared boats in their slips. Nothing sank (but close).
    2 days later, the owner of the snail bote came to collect his hull. Openly admitted he had no insurance, declared the rich people on the docks could afford the damage.
    The police wrote up the report and he motored back to the east anchorage.
    I'm rambling again;
    But this is another example of damage with out responsibility; Well, in Lake Worth the majority of damage came from anchored boats that broke loose and hit boats well protected in marinas. Well, it happened in Jax, Ortega, 3 boats F*****d.
    Why can I not mount some loaded Torpedo Launchers on my boat??
    My Saigas would not be able to sink them fast enough.

    I'm rambling,, again,,
    But, how many claims out there were the result of a SFB action/lack of action against a prepared ship?

    Reality for the real boaters;
    We all luv our boats. Our profession and income; Our luv for the water.
    Bad weather happens and good ships get damages even with the best of plans in motion. I'm not gripping on these events, S**t happens. Hate it when that happens..
    My gripe; lots of the damage did not have to happen. Keel Hauling comes to mind..
  3. Pascal

    Pascal Senior Member

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    Well obviously dozens of boats which stayed were they were didn't make it. Hundreds just here in the grove got damage ranging from scratches to severe cracks. Barges have been picking up wrecks for a month now bringing them to an empty lot at the port of Miami. And while some were. It properly prepared, many has extra lines but with the average slip only 2' wider than the boats, there is no way to keep boats of pilings while allowing for the 4' above high tide we got

    On canals and sheltered sections of the icw you can get away without moving not here in Miami

    Anyone who s been around boats for a while knows that boats left on side ties have little chance of surviving with any significant fetch. We saw it in Wilma and again with Irma

    I agree that hauling out is a risky option. Boats often tumble off the stands in high winds or get damage from debris. This is why ever since moving here in the early 90s moving my boat away , and now the one I run, is the best option. It only take one piece of flying debris to break a window and causing $10k worth of damage

    Especially as NHC track forecasts have gotten very precise once you get to the 60 to 72 hour timeframe. Their intensity forecasts are still a lot more vague but that's not as critical as track to make the decision. You only need to move a boat 120 to 150nm to be outside the danger zone.

    In this case, once the NHC forecast track started shifting west early Thursday morning, it was crystal clear that the storm was going to pass west of Miami - FTL - WPB The question was how far and how strong... it s roughly 80nm across putting the east coast still too close for comfort and just on the fringe of hurricane force winds. Survivable in a canal with minimal preparation but not in more exposed locations like coconut grove

    Based on that the "Where?" question was easy to answer: east. Nassau, Great harbor Cay (one of the best holes!) or Eleuthera which is what I picked. After a 200nm the worst we got was 30kts and not a drop of rain
    Last edited: Oct 17, 2017
  4. Capt Ralph

    Capt Ralph Senior Member

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    Or less. WTF,, the big boats in the lower islands. Just had to head south a few hours.
    Your self moved da big-un east (good move) a few hours.
    But the junk that stayed out there on a kite string,,,,,, Throw em in jail..
  5. Pascal

    Pascal Senior Member

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    Quite a few boats were damaged in the slips by sailboats left anchored or on the city mooring field.

    While dinner key marina is somewhat protected from the open bay (and anchored boats) by spoil islands the surge was high enough for some to get dragged or float over and thru the thin mangrove into the marina. Right now we have a 35' sailboat lying on its side 10' off our stern with its mast extending under the boat. I had my diver check, we have 2' clearance at mlw between our wheels and the spreaders...

    There were probably 20 sailboats which floated over the island and into the marina, some ripping pulpits and swim platform. I noticed scratches high on our pilings on the tee head which could only have been caused by loose boats. Glad I went to eleuthera.
  6. rocdiver

    rocdiver Senior Member

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    He has a couple of deckhands that come in during the day to maintain the big boat and Mate on his Cabo for day trips, which is now docked nearby.

    Just doesn't want anybody living aboard as his house is all glass facing the water. 3 stories of glass!
  7. leeky

    leeky Senior Member

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    If avoiding damage to your boat from a hurricane is your goal, then moving out of the path of the hurricane is always the best choice. Staying in the path of a hurricane leaves too many things to chance.
  8. Capt J

    Capt J Senior Member

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    Yeah, but you could also keep moving as far as New York with the hurricane on your heels the entire way. Pascals move worked out very well from him. But if it happened to turn east then you're stuck weathering it out there as the ocean would be too rough to move anywhere else. It's a tough call all of the way around.
  9. Pascal

    Pascal Senior Member

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    There was absolutely zero chance of irma turning left into the bahamas based on the NHC forecasts published from thrusday morning on. Zero.

    Its always a tough call, and my only regret was not having left earlier on Thursday. We ended up leaving around midnight and but the time we got to the nw channel at daybreak it was already a but rougher than i like it to be :)

    At 72 hours the forecast error is well under 100nm, despite the folklore and what the drama queens on TWC want you to believe

    Irma was a worst case scenario because it came from the south. Storms coming in from the east are much easier to avoid
  10. Silver Lining

    Silver Lining Member

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    With all due respect to Pascal the hurricane prediction errors for the Atlantic basin direct from nhc for 2012 thru 2016 were:

    107 nm error at 72 hours one sigma or 67 percent. That means one out of three prediction were more

    The ninety percent prediction is about 220 nm which means 90 percent fell within the 220 but one out of ten did not

    The average error at 72 hours for for the last 5 years was a little over 100 nm which means half were more. These numbers improved dramatically over the last few decades

    Personally, moving a big boat makes very good sense. But with our 50 ft boat of limited range it seems staying put in a good marina is best. We were at Hollywood loggerhead which is protected and that area is known for minimal storm surge
  11. Boneafide

    Boneafide New Member

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    Total bs. He was supposed to have a full time crew, but doesn’t pay his bills in a timely manner. Was a definite Insurance job.
  12. baltimore bob

    baltimore bob Member

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    Is that Ramrod Key?
  13. Capt J

    Capt J Senior Member

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    LOLOLOLOL I saw that very same boat like that several years back when I was running a yacht from Corpus Christi to Fort Laud....it was in Alabama.
  14. Boneafide

    Boneafide New Member

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    Why do you ask?
  15. baltimore bob

    baltimore bob Member

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    Could have sworn I saw her a few weeks ago when I was in the Keys raising Trumpy.
  16. Capt Ralph

    Capt Ralph Senior Member

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    This is a very old picture off of the web.
    Old popular surveyors site.
  17. Boneafide

    Boneafide New Member

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    The boat used to be named SHERIFF. The current owner is the 2nd owner. It had a Bahamian crew on it before. My wife and I flew over to Lucaya and brought it back after the closing. Performed a very extensive refit to it at Rolly Marine yard in Lauderdale. Left the boat in Ocean Reef after the owner wasn’t paying the contractors what he owed them from the refit. Still owes a lot of money to this day. Should have done a background check on this one.
  18. saltysenior

    saltysenior Senior Member

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    Thank God I don't have to worry every hurricane season anymore.......BUT, just what do you think is expected of a full time ''captain'' with a hurricane possibly on it's way .?? Does he have the authority to move the boat ?? Can he grease a yard a few grand to be hauled and then hopefully get reimbursed if the storm does not hit ?? Is he responsible if he moves the wrong way like many did ???....Is it his duty to forget his home and family and stay on the boat for the storm ??? Too many questions w/ too many answers..
  19. Pascal

    Pascal Senior Member

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    It is indeed difficult but as a full time captain it is my responsibility to make the best possible decision to protect the boat I am paid to protect

    I guess every situation is different i had full authority to make the decision to move the boat and where. I kept the owners updated daily in the 5 days before Irma arrived and was never second guessed. Even when i made the call on Thursday night to head east to Eleuthera instead of the west coast as originally planned.

    And indeed leaving my own boat behind wasn't a fun decision. Had i stayed on my boat i probably would have been able to adjust the lines during the storm and avoid $15 to $20k worth of damages