[ Kill Cords ]

British powerboat champion Shelley Jory-Leigh miraculously escaped a dramatic crash which saw her co-driver flung into the air at 90mph.

The 40-year-old sportswoman’s boat hit a freak wave and nearly upended, catapulting her colleague Patrick Huybreghts nearly 100ft into the sea and into the path of oncoming boats.

Shelley was thrown around the boat like a ‘rag doll’ while her Belgian co-driver was hurled against her head before being thrown out of the speeding vessel.

The Southampton-based racer radioed for help as she feared 53-year-old Patrick, who was unconscious in the racing line, would be mowed down by another powerboat.

The pair were rescued, with Patrick being plucked from the water, and they were taken to hospital but remarkably both escaped serious injury.

Race bosses restrict competitors to a 90mph speed limit as they fear an accident above that could prove fatal.

Speaking about the ordeal, Shelley – the only woman pilot in the World Championship – said the trauma caused her to collapse after they were rescued during the race near Valetta in Malta.

Shelley, who steers while Patrick controls the boat’s throttle, said: ‘We are so very lucky we are still both in one piece.

‘It’s the worst accident I’ve had in terms of injuries. We were absolutely gunning it at the time.

‘When I saw the video of what had happened I was surprised I was walking and talking. It was genuinely shocking and frightening to watch.

‘This was about as fast as you can have an accident – we just about pushed it to the limit.’

The pair were competing on the third day of racing in Valetta for rounds three and four of the Powerboat GPS World Championship.

The team, called Spirit of Belgium, were in second place and on course to win the weekend event when disaster struck on lap nine of the 16 lap race.

Shelley said: ‘We were flat out at 87mph and came round a mark which was not a particularly hard corner but it was a bit rough and I think we hit a freak wave.

‘The boat dug in and went down on the left side and Patrick was hurled on top of me, then we went into a pendulum action and the boat threw us to the right.

‘That’s when it catapulted Patrick out that side. As soon as he was thrown out, the kill cord stopped the engine and then I radioed for help.

‘My biggest fear was that I could see him in the racing line and he wasn’t waving his arms so I realised he was unconscious.

‘It was like Lewis Hamilton being laid out in the middle of a Formula One track but he had a bright orange crash helmet on and thankfully he was not hit.

‘A safety fleet was sent out to rescue us and get Patrick out of the water. Once the doctor came on board I just collapsed and was concussed for two hours. I could feel my entire body shutting down.’

Shelley’s 42 year old husband Trevor Leigh, a race engineer, watched the drama unfold but was ‘remarkably calm’, she said.

Patrick and Shelley were both released from hospital and she is back at home. Both suffered severe bruising, concussion and whiplash. The boat was undamaged.

Shelley added: ‘If you prod me anywhere it feels bruised, even my hands and feet, and it even hurts to brush my hair.

‘I think the first time we are both back in the boat we will feel a little uneasy but we will try to get out there as soon as we can to find our confidence again.’

The team are still in second place in the World Championship and race next in Sardinia in July.

(source)

A BOATMAN from Flushing has been found guilty of being drunk in charge of his vessel and failing to avoid a collision which destroyed a £20,000 yacht.

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However, during the trip the boat struck a buoy and they were thrown into the water and later rescued by an RNLI lifeboat crew.

With no kill cord – which would be attached to the boat driver’s body and cut the engine when pulled – the RIB continued and smashed into a nearby yacht, gouging a hole in the side and sinking it.

[..]

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At 10.25 this morning Milford Haven Coastguard were alerted by the Port Authority to a small rigid inflatable boat which had overturned near the semlogistics number 2 berth tipping the lone occupant into the water. (more…)

A jet-skier drowned after an accident on the River Wear, an inquest heard.

Michael Scott, from Springwell, Sunderland, died in hospital after he was pulled from the water at South Hylton. (more…)

“Well, carrying on from KY’s nightmare day a few weeks ago, today it was my turn. We launched from Oreston slip at Plymouth with the intention of going up the Yealm and having lunch at the Ship Inn.

First problem of the day, the bloody battery was dead and therefore couldn’t start the engine, no problem i thought i will get the jump leads out start her from my friends RC4.8. It then dawned on me that due to my car breaking down this week they were in the boot that was in the garage some 30 miles away. No problem i will go and buy some, so off im went and came back with yet another set of jump leads. Next problem the leads were not long enough so out came the battery whilst trying to hold the battery and leads on at the same time, some relief when she eventually fired up.

So, we were away, beautiful day, sun shining sea relatively calm this is what winter ribbing is about…..WRONG!!!

Just as we were on the run in to the Yealm at about 30 knots the boat chine walked and next thing i knew, i was flying through the air straight in the water. BUGGER, as i surfaced i noticed my girlfriend about 10 m away with the boat what seemed like some 30m plus away (thank god for kill cords). Both our life jackets automatically inflated which i dont know was a good or bad thing, all i know is i could hardly make progress trying to get to her. Luckily my friend who was playing about and although he didn’t see the incident eventually noticed something wasn’t quite right and was on scene instantly.

We clambered aboard the RC and was eventually repatriated with the SR4. Cold and shaken we headed back into Plymouth flat out as my concern was to get out of the wet clothing as we started to chill rapidly.

Heading back to shore i started the mental reconstruction of what went wrong, it happened all so quick i still dont know what actually caused the boat to catapult us both out, especially as it was bloody calm but it happened. I was so glad that on this occassion i was out with a friend as although not potentially life threatening the water was pretty cold and wouldn’t want to be in it for too long.

Anyway, i am not after sympathy or anything but reiterating the use of kill cords, lifejackets and never to be complacent with the sea or your own ability. I look back on it now and p**s myself laughing but today has taught me that anything can and will happen when you least expect it to.”

(source)

A north-east lifeboat officer has warned powerboat and jetski owners to test their kill cord mechanisms before putting to sea after a potentially deadly runaway jetski incident was avoided on Friday. (more…)

A LIFEBOAT was launched this afternoon after an unmanned jet ski was spotted still under power about half a mile north of Roker Pier, Sunderland. (more…)

Following two life-threatening incidents last week within a span of five days, the Coast Guard is warning mariners of the risk they’re taking when they don’t properly use a vessel’s engine “kill cord.” USCG describes the device as a lanyard, similar to those found on treadmills, designed for one end to attach to the boat and the other end to attach to the operator so that if the person falls overboard, the engine will immediately disable. (more…)

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (WWLP) – After two life threatening incidents in Massachusetts waters just within the last six days, the coast guard is warning boaters of the risk they’re taking when they fail to use a vessel’s “engine kill cord” properly. (more…)

This is the moment a boater’s life was put in danger as he fooled about on the Broads.

A shocking two-minute video clip shows a man in an inflatable speedboat weaving around another boat at speed.

The man is then thrown from the dinghy which is left spinning on its own accord with the engine still running.

He then recklessly tries to swim towards the boat, a move which could have cost him a limb or his life.

The Broads Authority has launched an investigation into the incident which is believed to have taken place at the River Waveney, near Oulton Broad, where the speed limit is 5mph.

Today, officials condemned the foolish behavior and reiterated calls for people to be safe on the county’s waterways.

Adrian Vernon, head navigation ranger for the Broads Authority, said: “It was a shocking thing to see. I’ve seen some stupid things in the past but that really is something else.

“He is doing something very dangerous, cutting under the bows of the other boat. If it were me, I would be swimming in the opposite direction to safety, but at one stage he is swimming towards the boat – that propeller would have cost him a limb or his life.”

PC Paul Bassham, from Broads Beat, a team which patrols the 125 miles of rivers during the high season, said: “This is a very silly and stupid thing to do. On this occasion the person has come out laughing, but it could have been very different. From what I have seen on the footage, this person is not wearing a lifejacket and also they have not got a kill cord.”

All modern outboard boats come with a “kill cord” or lanyard which attaches to the passenger and immediately cuts the engine if they topple overboard.

Mr Vernon added: “We would urge everyone on the water to always wear a lifejacket and if you have got an outboard particularly, the kill cord must be worn exactly for that reason.

“I don’t know if the man had been drinking but drinking and helming do not go together.”

The message comes just weeks after another video sequence dubbed Summer of Madness on the Broads was posted on YouTube.

In the clip, holidaymakers on two cruisers at Horning suddenly find their peace shattered, and their crafts rocking, when another boat squeezes between them at a speed far exceeding the regulation 4mph for the stretch.

Elsewhere, the rescue boat and two fire engines were called to help two men who fell into the River Yare, near Kirby Bedon, at the end of last month after their canoe overturned. It was believed the men had been drinking.

A spokesman from Yarmouth coastguard, which has the remit to cover all of the Broads, urged people not to take “unnecessary risks”.

He said: “We do get called to incidents where people are being stupid on the water. We would urge people to wear lifejackets and be aware of what they are doing. It’s common sense really.”

Paul Greasley, managing director of Norfolk Broads Direct, which hires out boats, said: “We tell all our customers to be careful, wear the buoyancy jackets which are freely available, to show respect for others, keep to the speed limits and if they see an incident like that to report it.”

Over the past two years, there have been no boating related deaths on the Broads but of 11 injuries needing hospital treatment last season six were caused when people were stepping on and off boats.

Anyone with more information about the incident is asked to call the Broads Authority on 01603 610734.