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Reporting: Catamaran Sailors Rescued off Virginia Beach

Added by damonAdmin on Nov 17, 2003 - 07:48 PM

Virginia Beach, VA, Thursday November 13 th 2003 -- Jef and Christian, two experienced catamaran sailors who have known each other since childhood, decided to go for a sail. Jef sails a NACRA 5.2 and Christian (a long time Hobie 16 owner) a Hobie 14. On Thursday, November 13 th, 2003, with high winds in the forecast, the two sailors decided that their combined 310 pounds would be put to good use on the NACRA 5.2, so Christians Hobie 14 stayed on the beach.

They had sailed the NACRA from the same spot the previous weekend with winds in the twenties and very high waves. During that sail the box of emergency flares Jef normally carries on the NACRA 5.2 had been lost at sea. On this Thursday, a gust of 44.9 mph had been reported at 8:00 am, but by the time our sailors launched the boat into unusually flat surf at 2:00 pm, the Oceana station was reporting sustained 27.6 mph with gusts up to 38.

To prepare for the conditions, Jef and Christian considered the air and water temperatures as well as the wind speed. They were both dressed in full 4/3mm wetsuits, 5mm boots and gloves, spray tops, and topped off with special kayak hats. On board they carried a cell phone in a special dry bag that allowed the use of the phone without taking it out of the bag, and new flares that were purchased to replace the ones that had been lost.

Winds were blowing directly off-shore, this flattened the normal surf and made it very easy to launch. Soon they were double trapped, flying along in the stiff breeze, dealing with the occasional heavy gust. Suddenly, less than a mile from shore, the jib let go with a bang. The thrashing jib had to be brought under control, but with the high winds this wasn't going to be easy. With the boat heaving up and down in the large Atlantic swell, and the jib flapping like the flag it had become, they were able to tie the jib clew to the sheets using a makeshift piece of line. To do the repair it had been neccessary to come close to head to wind, this put the boat cross-wise to the waves, which were getting higher and steeper as they were blown Northward into the shipping channels entering the Chesapeake Bay.

As the repair was completed, a container ship was spotted, so it was time to get moving. The NACRA picked up speed as they headed downwind to get out of the path of the ship. Conditions became much rougher in the jumble of shipping lanes off the mouth of the Chesapeake, and as they got clear of the freighter they went over for the first time. As they prepared to right the boat a big shock was in store, both daggerboards were broken off at the hulls. It was not clear to them when or why the boards broke off. The first thought was that they had hit something, but realized that hitting something with both boards would have probably hit the rudders as well, and they hadn't even kicked up. It could have been the sideways force put on the daggers while lying beam to the seas during the jib repair.

At this point their options were becoming limited. The situation was this, no daggerboards, questionable jib that couldn't be sheeted tight, and now three ships in the area. Two large ships were coming in, one going out, and one small catamaran in the middle of this nasty triangle. Wave faces were now over 10 feet as they attempted to turn South and get out of the area. As they picked up speed the high winds and waves conspired to launch the NACRA into a violent pitchpole, when the boat was righted they were again pointed North. Trying to tack over was unsuccessful and gybing in these conditions seemed like a bad idea. On one final attempt to tack, the boat was blown over backward by a combination of wind and sea in dramatic fashion, breaking loose the repaired jib and shredding the main sail into tatters.

The two of them continued to work on the problem at hand. Knowing it would be near impossible to attach the jib after the boat was righted, they improvised a safety line and swam to the jib to attempt the repair while the boat was on it's side. After attaching the jib and inspecting the damaged main sail, they attempted to right the boat. Unfortunately, by this time they had been capsized so long that the mast had taken on water, and the shredded main was not catching wind to aid recovery. the seriousness of their situation became clear. They were nearing exhaustion, the boat was not able to go to windward even if they could right it, they were sitting in busy shipping lanes, the waves were taller than the skyward hull, and it was now 4:30 pm, less than an hour till sunset.

It was time to call for help. Jef retrieved his cell phone from the tramp and dialed the non-emergency police number to report their situation, believing that they still might be able to sail home, but wanting someone to know they were having trouble. No one was answering at that number and so he called 911. Once they were connected to the Coast Guard station at Portsmouth things began to move quickly. The CG dispatched a ship but it soon became apparent that it couldn't reach Jef and Christian before dark because of the sea state, so a helicopter was put in the air.

Back at the NACRA, Jef and Christian maintained righting position on the lower hull to keep the boat on it's side, believing that they would be harder to find if turtled. Jef was able to don his "miners lamp" flashlight as the light began to fail. As dusk approached they could see the lights of a helicopter in the distance, but it didn't appear to be headed their way. When the 911 operator was told about the helicopter, they were requested to fire a series of flares, but the CG helicopter didn't spot them. Finally when they were down to their last two flares the chopper turned in their direction. Later the pilot reported that Jef's headlamp had been a big help in guiding them directly to the boat, once they were headed the right way.

Once over the boat, the Coast Guard dropped a rescue diver into the water, he helped our sailors into the slings and they were winched to safety in full darkness at 6:10 pm. Christian mentioned to me how professional and cheerful the rescue diver was during their recovery, as if he was happy to get to do a real rescue after all their training. It wasn't completely routine though, at the time of the rescue winds were still in the twenties with gusts reported at 38 miles per hour. Jef and Christian were taken from the Coast Guard station to a local hospital as a precaution, but were released without being admitted.

The NACRA 5.2 was left on it's own, and if it escapes being crushed by a ship, it could end up in Newfoundland or Iceland via the Atlantic currents.

----Additional information 11-18-2003---- I spoke to the Coast Guard about the rescue and received some clarification, as well as the official press release, quoted below. It turns out that the H60 Jayhawk rescue helicopter initially had the wrong location by a couple of miles, the 47 foot motor lifeboat was able to see the flares and vector the air crew towards the sailors. The lifeboat then turned back since they would not reach the NACRA by the time the Jayhawk completed the mission, due to the sea state.

Coast Guard Helicopter Flight Crew

  • Lt. Cmdr. Daniel Molson - Pilot
  • Lt. Curtis Brown - Co-Pilot
  • Petty Officer 2nd Class Randall Swanz - Flight Mechanic
  • Petty Officer 3rd Class Shannon Brugh - Rescue Swimmer

------------------------------------

Press report of the weather and rescue:
http://home.hamptonroads.com/stories/print.cfm?story=62313&ran=119722 target="_blank"

Detailed weather report for November 13th, 2003 at Virginia Beach, VA.
http://www.wunderground.com/history/airport/KNTU/2003/11/13/DailyHistory.html?FULLALMANAC=KORF

See how local television reported the rescue. (Real Video Player Required)
http://www.wavy10.com/video/paidrescue.ram

--- Official Coast Guard Press Release ---

PORTSMOUTH, Va. –The Coast Guard teamed with Virginia Beach Police dispatch to rescue two people from the water approximately one mile east of Cape Henry, Va., last night after their 17-foot catamaran boat capsized in 10-foot seas and 30 to 40-knot winds.

Coast Guard Group Hampton Roads received a call from Virginia Beach Police dispatch stating there were two people, Jeff Fields and Christian Theurer, clinging to their overturned catamaran vessel. Virginia Beach Police dispatch had communications with one of the men in the water via the person’s cell phone. Group Hampton Roads then took the cellular call. Coast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City launched a rescue helicopter and Coast Guard Station Little Creek launched a 47-foot rescue boat.

Fortunately, Fields and Theurer were wearing lifejackets and carrying flares. They were able to direct the Coast Guard helicopter to their position by firing off three red flares.

The rescue helicopter crew saw the flares and were able to locate and hoist Fields and Theurer safely into the aircraft. Fields and Ghereur were flown to Naval Air Station Oceana and picked up by emergency medical personnel.

With cold weather on its way, the Coast Guard encourages all boaters to wear their lifejackets and carry flares. These items assisted in the survival of Fields and Theurer and prompted a timely and successful rescue by the Coast Guard.

USCG

Footnote: This account is based on a phone interview with Christian, combined with available news sources. ---Updated 11-18-2003 with Coast Guard info---
 
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