|
The
Officers, Directors and Members of
US SAILING
are
pleased to present the
ARTHUR B. HANSON RESCUE MEDAL
to the
crew of
for the rescue as follows:
On October 27, 2001 at a Pamlico Sailing Club race on the Pamlico
River in Washington, NC in 20 knots of shifty wind, a junior sailor
aboard Glenn Howell's J/30 was struck with the boom at the leeward mark
and swept overboard. At the time of the incident, Howell’s J/30 was
flying a spinnaker and leading the race. Six boat-lengths behind in
second place was the sharp eyed crew of Rocket J who, in spite of just
recovering from a spreader-dousing knock down, spied the junior sailor
in the water.
The victim was noted to be conscious and bleeding from the face, but
floating well in the water, due to his PFD. As Howell’s J/30 attempted
to douse it’s spinnaker, Rocket-J deftly dropped main and spinnaker
while starting its auxiliary, and deployed its Lifesling in a classic
ski-boat style pick up. There was considerable traffic due to the
proximity of the racing mark, while Rocket J abandoned it’s now first
place position in the race, and swooped in to pull the victim from the
water, all in less than five minutes time.
The victim suffered from a significant facial laceration and a
fractured thumb. Rocket J treated the facial laceration with a compress
and placed a splint on the sailors thumb. Then returned the victim back
to his boat that was standing by.
Congratulations to Randy Boyles, Neal Craven, Paul Baumbach, Keith
Sparks, Tom Hughes, and Mike Hession for their quick recovery and
administering first aid to an injured sailor. US SAILING is pleased to
present the Arthur B. Hanson Rescue Medal in recognition of this event.
Ronald C. Trossbach
Chairman, Safety at Sea Committee
By Direction
|
On November 16, 2002,
Dr. Joseph M. James, Past Area D Director of US SAILING presented the
Arthur B. Hanson Rescue Medal to "Rocket J" in the town of
Eastern, NC, at the Washington Yacht and Country Club for races Rocket J
competed in with the Pamlico Sailing Club. |
|
|
|
 |
 |
|
Left to Right:
Dr. Joseph James, Randy Boyles (skipper), Neal Craven
(foredeck), Tom Hughes (trimmer), Keith Sparks (trimmer), Mike Hession (Main Trim and
Tactician), and Paul Baumbach (mast and pit). |
|
|
DETAILS:
|
|
Nominators Name: Gregory Miller
Event Name: Pamlico Sailing Club Spring Series
Sponsoring Yacht Club: Pamlico Sailing Club
Event City: Washington
Event State: NC
Body of Water: Pamlico River
Rescuing Skipper 1: Randy Boyles
Rescuing Boat Make Model: J/30
Rescuing Boat Name: Rocket J
Rescuing Boat Length: 30
Was any injury sustained by the victim: y
Can your story be published: y
Can you provide articles about this event: y
Was a PFD worn: Y
What position was the victim working before they went in: midboat
Was this day or night: day
Was the victim able to help in the recovery: y
Was a Lifesling aboard: y
Was it used: y
What happened:
This event occurred this past weekend, October 27th. A minor crewmember
aboard Glen Howell's J/30 "White J/30" was struck with the
boom during a fearsome windshift at the leeward mark. Racing in 20kt
breezes with some tricky shifts, Howell's J/30 approached the mark
directly ahead (10 bl) of Rocket J. The blow threw the crewman directly
overboard. He was noted to be conscious and bleeding from the face, but
floating well in the water, thanks to his PFD. Howell's J/30 immediately
took down it's chute and turned to recover it's crewman, who had already
been reached and aided by Rocket J. The rescue was complicated by the
high winds, near-mark condition in traffic, and the injuries sustained
by the victim, which included a significant facial lac and an obviously
fractured thumb. No mayday was sent in this instance, and rescue was
performed in less than 5 minutes.
How did the victim get hoisted onto the deck: Brute force.
ADDITIONAL INFO:
In the most recent incident, the victim was pulled from the water by the
J/30 Rocket J, a splint applied to the fractured thumb, a compress
applied to the facial laceration, and the victim was then returned to
the "No-name" J/30 from which he was lost.
|
|
