[Paddlewise] Wild Weekend Weather - Incident Summaries

Note: For kayak incident summary, scroll to 5th paragraph immediately.

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Now that BC is getting a constant flow of westerly weather, the number
of boater incidents is on the rise. From the Canadian Coast Guard
activity report for this past weekend, it looks like both small craft
operators and paddlers are not taking the weather warnings seriously, or
are simply ignoring them - or perhaps not fully realize the
implications.

A small dingy overturned, sending a number of occupants into the cold
water in 3 foot chop off Oak Bay. Luckily, a whale-watch zodiac happened
by, as there was no distress equipment and no immersion apparel, etc. A
number of other incidents occurred that are not relevant to PW, with
some families also lucky to be alive, while others did not survive.
Point is, spring hits, and boaters heading out forget the water is cold
and the wind - where sustained - produces chop steep enough to cause a
capsize. That's why the warnings are called "small craft advisories".

For kayakers, the warning parameters are a little too wide within there
spectrums for all but the experienced and seaworthy kayaker. In Canada,
at least here in BC, small craft warnings generally commence mid April
or so (winter is often left to default at gales and higher). A small
craft warning is given for winds up to and not over 33 knots. That is a
lot of wind for a noviate to intermediate paddler to handle, all things
being equal. Paddlers of human powered craft need to consult actual
predicted values and check with weather reporting stations for on-going
conditions, and err on the side of caution.

Three examples follow from the weekend gales. On Monday, winds were
expected to hover around 30 to 35 knots maximum,, with that maximum
building later in day. The revised forecast changed to 35 to 45 knots
for the vicinity in general around Victoria, with winds not as strong
for Vancouver, although civilian radio advised of a "wind warning" for
the mainland. The wind came on strong just before noon, with little
build-up time, although it had been generally windy for a number of
days.

Incident number one occurred in the cold, choppy waters northeast of
Bowen Island, just north of Vancouver. Allen Bowen (of Penticton) had
been paddling with his girlfriend Lisa Keith for a couple of hours in
Howe Sound. A good 2-foot chop was eventually enough to overturn Keith's
kayak. They are calm water lake paddlers, and unaccustomed to choppy
seas with wind-swell. Bowen was able to assist his girlfriend back into
her boat, but was immediately overturned by an even larger wave.

The Vancouver Sun article I purchased to help explain events further,
left me with a number of questions, but the gist of the article
indicates Bowen struggled to free himself from the overly tight
sprayskirt, which wouldn't release from the coaming. He was gasping for
air and fighting to free himself. He obviously got out and at some point
sent Keith to get help from Bowen Island. He was not wearing proper
immersion apparel, but did have on a PFD. His kayak apparently sunk with
its gear aboard, while Bowen struggled in the cold water. He saw a ferry
entering the main channel of Howe Sound, and began waving. He then
removed his yellow PFD to draw certain attention.

A passenger aboard the 139 meter long Queen of Surrey noticed the PIW
(person in water). It took 10 minutes to get the ferry's rescue zodiac
into the water. (Unlike in Germany, our ferries stop to assist hapless
kayakers.) Early hypothermia was setting in, and Bowen was very happy to
be aboard. His girlfriend, also going hypothermic from the dunking, was
retrieved from the craggy coastline of Bowen Island by the crew. Bowen
(no relation to the island) commented that "the size and power of the
waves out here caught us a little off guard...I guess I'm pretty lucky."

Pictures accompanied the Vancouver Sun article. A marine salvage worker
who arrived on the scene to attempt kayak recovery operations, commented
that the kayaks were of sufficiently small enough size that it was his
opinion the kayaks were not suited to the conditions encountered.
(Perhaps they were recreational kayaks.)

Incident number two also occurred Monday, off the the Victoria
waterfront. The couple headed out in their kayaks, and were nailed by
the big waves and wind which came in huge gusts. The women kayaker
managed to paddle safely back to shore, but the male paddler she was
with capsized and was unable to right himself. A bystander on shore
called Oak bay police, who in turn called the Rescue Coordination
Center. The kayaker was able to swim to shore (lee shore I believe) and
was taken to the local acute care hospital for hypothermia exposure. The
Victoria Times Colonist newspaper report added a comment from Marc
Proulx: "I don't know what they were doing out there, the water was
totally beyond their capabilities."

The third incident occurred the previous day on Sunday, off the Victoria
waterfront, and involved an outrigger canoe team. The six men were
within the harbor limits training for an upcoming canoe race in Hawaii,
so headed out in search of larger waves off the breakwater. A 3-meter
(8-foot) swell swamped the open outrigger canoe about 9:25 am, sending
the paddlers into the cold, difficult sea-state. Winds had not reached
full potential for the day, but were running 25 knots at minimum.

Meanwhile, the crew of the harbor Pilot Boat headed out for duty at 9:45
am., as big cruise ships were expected in later. The crew reported a lot
of spray over the wheelhouse, while the boat rocked, rolled,  heaved,
pitched - with wipers on constantly in an attempt to see out the
wheelhouse. One of the crew noticed what looked like a log in the heavy
seas, and decided to adjust course and close in for a closer look.
Eventually they could just make out six men attempting to stay with
their swamped canoe. The faint blue outline of the canoe was just barely
visible beneath the water, though the outrigger remained above (the
log?).

The paddlers were hailed on the loudspeaker to determine if assistance
was required. The response was somewhat feeble, initiated by one paddler
waving his paddle. The crew assumed this to be affirmative, as opposed
to negatory. The paddlers were cold and shivering, and not too
energetic. The men had no distress equipment, and were wearing only PFDs
and sweat pants, etc. The crew blocked the swell and wind using the
pilot boat, and lowered the hydraulic platform to aid rescue procedures.
The canoe team were taken into a heated cabin, and then rushed back to
shore, where three ambulances were waiting.

The captain indicated that the men were extremely lucky to be alive,
considering they would most likely have perished had not the mate
investigated what he thought was just a log. There was a big ebb tide
with wind, both combining to take the men away from land. The paddlers
were extremely embarrassed, and refused to give their names in order to
"protect the foolish" --  as one of paddlers put it.

Reporting from Victoria,
Doug Lloyd


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