US SAILING

Safety At Sea - Hanson Rescue Award Recipient
 
The Officers, Directors and Members of
 US SAILING
are pleased to present the
ARTHUR B. HANSON RESCUE MEDAL
to

Rich Schneider and Alvin Hensel

for the rescue as follows:

On June 3, 2001 at the Edgewater Yacht Club Sunday Series at noon, on Lake Erie, with winds of 18 to 25-knots, waves 4 to 6-feet, water temperature of 56 degrees and air temperature in the low 50's, Crede Calhoun on board his Highlander, named Nike IV, with crew Rob Malone and Jeffery Krotine were on the way to the starting line when the 21-foot centerboard boat capsized, and turtled, leaving the three victims in the water all wearing their Personal Flotation Devices.

Jazz, an alert J/22, observed the turtled boat and radioed the Race Committee. The Race Committee dispatched the Mark Set boat, Racer Chaser, with Rich Schneider and Alvin Hensel on board the 23’ open work boat. The radio call was monitored by the United States Coast Guard, who also dispatched a 25-foot Zodiac. Jazz needed to motor a good distance against the waves and wind to provide a visual location point.

Rich Schneider and Alvin Hensel arrived at the scene, while the victims were in the chilly water for fifteen to twenty minutes and quickly pulled Rob Malone and Jeffery Krotine out of the water using Racer Chaser's swim platform. As they made another approach to rescue Crede Calhoun, the United States Coast Guard arrived, who pulled the skipper from the water who had been in the water for twenty-five minutes.

All three victims were suffering from hypothermia and were taken to shore to be warmed. Later that day, Crede Calhoun suffered a heart attack and passed away.

Congratulations to Rich Schneider and Alvin Hensel for safely rescuing their fellow sailors. US SAILING is pleased to present the Arthur B. Hanson Rescue Medal in recognition of this event.

Ralph Naranjo, Chair
Safety at Sea Committee
By Direction

The Arthur B. Hanson Rescue Medal was presented to Rich Schneider and Alvin Hensel  at the Edgewater Yacht Club Sailors Award Banquet, Saturday,
November 10, 2001 by US SAILING Safety at Sea Committee
member, Dr. Dan van Heeckeren.
 

ewycmedal.jpg (42560 bytes)

Left to right, Mike Vining, Trustee Edgewater Yacht Club, Dr. Dan van Heeckeren, (Back to camera) US SAILING Safety at Sea Committee, Rich Schneider, Award Recipient, Al Hensel, Award Recipient, Joe Colling, Fleet Captain Edgewater Yacht Club. 
Photo by Jay Hawkins


DETAILS:
 

Nominators Name: Mike Vining, Joel Kay Commodore, Bob Foster Board Chairman.
Event Name: WEYC Club Race Sunday Series
Sponsoring Yacht Club: Edgewater Yacht Club
Date of Event: 06/03/2001
Event City: Cleveland
Event State: OH
Date of Incident: 06/03/2001 Approx Noon
Body of Water: Near Shore, Lake Erie
First Victims Name: Crede Calhoun
First Boat Name: Nike IV
First Boat Length: 20-21
First Boat Make Model: Highlander one design
Second Victims Name: Rob Malone
Third Victims Name: Jeffrey Krotine
Rescuing Skipper: Rich Schneider
Rescuing Boat Make/Model: Open, center console, inboard workboat
Rescuing Boat Name: Racer Chaser
Rescuing Boat Length: 23

What was the nature of this incident: Capsized centerboard boat.
Did a Mayday call go out: No
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 type: USCG Type 3 Extrasport style
What type1: USCG Type 3 Extrasport style
What type2: USCG Type 3 Extrasport style
What position was the victim working before they went in: helm, middle, bow.
Was this day or night: Day.
Wind speed: 18-25.
Wave height: 4-6 foot.
Water temperature: 56 deg F.
Air temperature: Low 50's.
How much time did the victim spend in the water: 20-25 minutes.
Did the victims boat lose site of the victim: No.
Was electronic MOB function used to locate the victim: No.
Was a rescue swimmer put in the water: N.
Did the victim have a strobe light or whistle: N.
Was the victim able to help in the recovery: Y.
Was a Lifesling aboard: N.
Was the race sailed under ORC regulations: N.
Rescuing Crews Names: Alvin Hensel

What happened: One-design boats, primarily J-22's, J-24's, and Dragons on this day, were sailing out to the starting area for the first regular Sunday series race. Conditions were 4 to 6 foot waves, wind was 18-25 knots. The water temperature was only 56 degrees. As the race committee was about to enter the starting sequence, they were notified by J-22 competitor Jeff Eiber aboard Tim Gibbs’s "Jazz" that a Highlander had capsized on the way to the starting area, upwind in the race course. The race committee radioed the mark boat to investigate. The J-22 competitor continued to sail upwind, indicating direction of the flailing boat. Due to wave conditions, and the fact that the Highlander had turtled and difficult to see, it took the weather mark boat approximately 15 minutes to locate and arrive at the capsized boat's location. Meanwhile, the J22 that had notified the RC of the turtle boat sailed up to the turtled boat to assist with location. The US Coast Guard, who we later learned was monitoring race committee radio communications, dispatched their rescue boat, a 23-25 foot Zodiac.

The three crew of the Highlander, a 20-foot centerboard boat, were clinging to the turtled boat. All three were wearing their life jackets. The EWYC race committee boat manned by Rich Schneider and Al Hensel were able to pull out the two crew. Rich and Al were in the process of making a second pass at skipper Crede Calhoun when the US Coast Guard boat arrived. The USCG boat was able to pull Crede from the water where he was clinging to the transom of the turtled boat.

All told, we believe the men were in the water around 25 minutes.

As a comment about the conditions on this particular day: I (Mike Vining) was aboard a Mumm30 that had started in another near-by starting area approx 1 1/2 hours earlier. The eight experienced sailors aboard my boat came very close to withdrawing after the first downwind leg. In my 25 years of open water racing, the conditions were among the worst I have seen. It was early in the year in Cleveland and unseasonably cold. Everyone aboard my boat was wearing ski clothing and foul weather gear. During our race at approximately the same time that Crede was capsized, we surfed past three or four waves downwind with the fractional kite and exceeded 20MPH as measured by the GPS. I am certain that this is the fastest I have ever moved aboard a keelboat.

A PDF file of the Plain Dealer article is available. This event was also reported by the three local TV stations and later by the Clevland Bar Journal.

This application is being made on behalf of the Flag and Board of Trustees of Edgewater Yacht Club.

What type of injuries were sustained (hypothermia included): Hypothermia, Subsequent heart attack, death.

How did victim help himself back onboard: Victims were conscious and able to assist themselves into the rescue boats.

How did the victim get hoisted onto the deck: rescue boat is low to the water and has a swim platform.


US Sailing Association
The National Governing Body for the Sport of Sailing