A Distress Call from Grace

As cruisers we are no strangers to being jolted awake during a peaceful slumber.  Sometimes it’s a gust of wind through the rigging or sometimes its rain falling into our open hatch, and still other times it’s a little bit of boat motion at anchor that makes you jump up and check the time because you are sure you are underway and must have overslept your watch.  This particular morning at anchor in Controller Bay, we were awakened by a voice on the VHF radio asking for assistance.  Steve on Lady Carolina was first to respond, and it turns out it was someone he knew, a single hander, from back in Mexico.  The vessel is called Grace.  From what I gathered during that initial transmission, Grace’s engine was not working, and he was coming up on the rocks that were just at the entrance to the very large bay.  He suspected he was possibly out of fuel, but maybe the fuel gauge wasn’t working, so he wasn’t sure.  Steve responded that he’d launch the dinghy and be out to help him as soon as possible.  Shortly after, Craig on True Blue V responded that he’d be out to help too. 

At this point I got on the radio and asked Grace what his position was, so we could see how far away from us he was and how close he really was to rocks before we entertained going out in a dinghy to help.  Seconds after that Steve got back on the radio and resumed his conversation, so I just listened, but didn’t really gather any new information beyond his position coordinates that I had asked for.  Tim quickly plugged those into his iPad, and responded with, “F that.”  Grace was just at the edge of the bay and nowhere near the rocks.  It’s about as big as any anchorage ever gets, and he should be able to sail in and anchor no problem. 

I don’t remember exactly how it went, but Tim got persuaded to go out and help.  True Blue V’s dinghy outboard is only 8HP, so it wouldn’t be practical for the trip, so Tim and Craig went in our dinghy and Steve and Kyle went in their dinghy.  At some point I suggested they take some diesel, in case that’s the problem.  Tim was very cranky about all this and refused to go too far out in the anchorage until it was clear that 1) Grace actually needed assistance, and 2) There was anything an additional dinghy and 2 people could do to help.  Following the VHF traffic, it appears that Grace started sailing away from land, and at that point Tim absolutely refused to follow.  Grace was clearly out of danger of any rocks and was clearly moving under sail. 

Steve and Kyle went after him, though.  And to make a long story short, Steve boarded Grace from his dinghy and left Kyle in the dinghy being towed, since that was safer than trying to board.  Grace’s skipper did not seem to be firing on all cylinders and seemed to be more interested in serving tea and chatting then doing anything about the situation.   Steve helped him sail all the way NOT to our bay, but to the next bay over, Taiohae, which is the capital of Nuku Hiva.  He helped him anchor, and then he and Kyle drove all the way back in the dinghy.  He believes that without his help Grace may have just sailed back out to sea and something bad could have happened.

At first blush, it might seem that Tim was being cold and heartless.  But after doing an objective assessment of what happened, it’s clear that Tim was being sensible.  And I’m not the only one who thinks this.  Leann, from True Blue V, took this as a learning opportunity and put together a checklist of things to ask and do when responding to any sort of call for help.  Being nice and helpful is a good thing, but not at the expense of putting yourself or any of your own crew at risk.

One of my reference books actually says the following:
“Anyone who encounters another person or vessel at sea who is in need of assistance must render that assistance as long as it can be done without endangering the passengers, crew, or vessel rendering aid.”

In hindsight, Grace didn’t really need physical help.  His problem was he was out of sorts a bit after completing the Pacific crossing alone and while hand steering most of the way (his autopilot failed).  Perhaps with a little more careful handling of his initial VHF call for help we could have calmly talked him through it and could have led him safely to anchor in our anchorage by voice.  I don’t know.  I wasn’t there.  I did not personally assess his state of mind.  I do think, however, that understanding the facts a bit better before rushing out of the anchorage in the dinghies would have been the more prudent thing to do.

I learned a lesson that day, and I’ve taken Leann’s checklist, added my own thoughts and commentary, and I keep it in my comms notebook.

And I’m so very glad Tim was as levelheaded as he was that morning.