The man in the article you'll find in this link was my dockmate, 2 slips down from us.
http://sanduskyregister.com/articles/20 ... 997094.txt
Since we both were live aboards, we saw each other quite frequently. We'd watch out for each other on stormy nights and help each other out coming and going at our slips. One morning this summer, I was up at around 4am shoving Tom off in his sailboat and Tim (in the slip between us) in his sailboat. They got an early start to be out sailing on the lake towards Put-In-Bay in time to see the sunrise over the water.
My wife, Dianne, and I were aboard Tom's boat with he and his girlfriend, Amy, the last night Tom spent at Battery Park Marina, sharing our thoughts on the season just past and talking about next year.
I know that Tom was tied up at the other marina, holding off to the last moment to get pulled out. That morning, he was alone when he took his boat into the well to be pulled. Then he left, and when they went looking for him as they needed him for something, that's when he was spotted in the water, but he was already deceased. I speculate that he went back to untie the lines from the dock cleats, undo his water hose, and take these, along with his steps to board to put in storage with the boat. He must have tripped or slipped. Unfortunately, there was no one close by to see him go in and rush to his assistance. There are indications he tried to pull himself back onto the dock, but couldn't. We don't know the autopsy results at this time, but I don't think he was in the water long enough to succumb to hypothermia. My guess is the shock of the cold water may have been too much for his heart.
If there is something we can all take from this, it is to think safety first at the fringes of the boating season; use the buddy system. Maintain situational awareness; what trip hazards are around you on the dock? If you did tumble into the water, know ahead of time where the closest place to climg out is. Tell someone where you are going so they can keep an eye on you. Wear a life preserver; one of those self inflating kinds are less cumbersome and conspicous than the non-inflating kind, which may entice you to wear it more around the water. It wouldn't be a bad idea to have on your personage one of those air horns run by a can of compressed air. Pulling out/putting is a time where we have lots and lots on our minds. Keep you mind focused and uncluttered. I'm sure others of you on the forum have more ideas to share.
Funny how life can be. I don't know my own neighbors around the house I've lived in for the last 7 years as well as I know my dockmates, whom I've only had 2 seasons. Even though my dockmates are scatted from Maryland to Arizona now, we've been in contact with each other and are all in shock and grief over the loss of Tom. We'll miss you, ole' buddy!!!
He was my dockmate
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David Kane
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- Location: Sandusky, OH
that is a horrible thing to have happen. sorry for your loss. i watched several years ago as 3 of my friends capsized a small boat in the mouth of the harbor. two died from exposure and never found the body of the other. it's a bad deal when friends are lost doing the things they love. very strong bonds are made on piers and marinas. i think it's because when boating, we know that we come head to head with an uncontrollable variable everytime we go out, mother nature.
life is tough! it's even tougher if your stupid.
~john wayne~
~john wayne~
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robertBrown3232
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- Location: catawba island , Oh
