[Paddlewise] sv: Tragedy in Sweden

Dear Tord, Ari and all,

I could not make the link to the nwt.se pictures work but there was a
few more bits for the puzzle in a later article on 2007.03.19. From this
it seems to be so that the kayak was not a sea kayak but a whitewater,
touring or racing kayak without decklines and bulkheads. It was equipped
with a 40 liters bag for floatation. A bag that easily could be removed.


	Quote: "... he puts the (floatation) bag under the belly for
buoyancy and grasps the pals kayak with both hands. But there is nothing
to hold on to. He draws himself up on the rear, tumbles off and hangs on
to the side. ...  Then the pals kayak capsizes and they are both in the
water. 

	(and then, quote, the pal:)"I am not going to take the risk to
get up again"(quote end)

Being "sportlers" and whitewater paddlers they seem to have another
understanding of safety and risk than "sea kayakers". These highly
skilled sportlers can do a lot more in a kayak than me being 60+ but was
the assessment of personal and environmental limitations realistic? Were
they dressed for hard work in a kayak and not for survival in a cold
lake? Did they have any protection for the hands, e.g. gloves? The
telephone call for assistance was done after they got to shore i.e. one
hour after the first capsize. Would it have been possible to use it
earlier, or did they just find that it wasn't necessary? In this case
deck lines and bulkheads might have made a difference and a paddler in a
kayak can bring a victim much faster to shore than a swimmer so it's
worthwhile to use the combined efforts of 2 swimmers to bring one of
them aboard a kayak. But was that not possible because the resquee could
not hold on to the rescuer (as reported) and no cowtails or ropes were
available? I recall clearly being the victim in a very similar incident
in the beginning of my kayaking career and how I used the deck lines to
get my rescuer upright as he capsized twice in very cold broaching waves
while he was struggling to drag me ashore.

It's a very sad story and especially since they both technically were
very capable but I wonder whether there is any new lesson to be learned.

I look forward to see your report Ari. 

Kind regards

Jens Viggo




>Dear Tord, Jens and all,

>here is a link to a local news site, which has some interesting images.

>As you can see, there was some floating ice.
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