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Two men dead, one on towpath?

Zayna

By Zayna
in General Boating

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cotswoldsman Veteran II

cotswoldsman

Posted
Posted

I am going to break my silence here as this has really effected me. I knew one of those that died.

They were both boaters one a Continuous Cruiser. It is believed that one of them fell into the canal and that night (Saturday Night) it had been slightly below freezing here so the water was very very cold. The boater that jumped in to rescue the other boater managed to get him up onto the towpath where he then had a Heart attack. The other boater who had jumped into the canal due to the cold and other factors was not able to get himself out of the canal and died of Hypothermia,

All very sad

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macc Contributor

macc

Posted
Posted

True. However I would rather drop dead from a heart attack than have a lingering death with cancer...

would you realay, is that from personal experience,having had 3 heart attacks before 39 years old fitted with 3 stents and still suffer from unstable angina is not much fun ether it can also be a long painful death for some with no cure.

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bassplayer Influencer

bassplayer

Posted
Posted

That's aweful news John.

 

It makes me wonder what any of us would do in those circumstances. I tried to pull my brother out from the back of his boat once and failed. I had to shout to someone for assistance. Once the clothes are soaked it makes you so much heavier.

 

In the end, we both had to grab his belt to get a good enough purchase to pull him up. Does anyone have any good tips? Should you strip down most of the way before jumping in to help someone?

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Chop! Rising Star

Chop!

Posted
Posted

Hi John

 

Welcome back, sorry you've lost 2 friends in such sad circumstances, a bad start to 2014, our condolences to the family and friends of the deceased. R.I.P.

Hope you'll be around again to share your wisdom.

 

Chop & Glenda

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David Mack Veteran II

David MackDonate to Canal World

Posted
Posted

That's aweful news John.

 

It makes me wonder what any of us would do in those circumstances. I tried to pull my brother out from the back of his boat once and failed. I had to shout to someone for assistance. Once the clothes are soaked it makes you so much heavier.

 

In the end, we both had to grab his belt to get a good enough purchase to pull him up. Does anyone have any good tips? Should you strip down most of the way before jumping in to help someone?

 

Have a ladder (or a boarding plank/ladder) on your boat. Then you can lower it in and allow the person to climb out without endangering yourself.

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Guest

Guest

Posted
Posted (edited)

That is awful and it did occur to me early on when this was posted that the cause may indeed be something along those lines. I think people who haven't yet fallen in underestimate how much effort is required to haul yourself out fully clothed or also haul somebody else out, even from the relatively shallow waters of a canal. I found it hard just hauling myself onto the back of my boat when I did wearing just jeans and a shirt. Add in the temperature, and of course no doubt additional clothing too as additional factors and it will be a lot worse.

 

Very sad.

 

 

spelling ed.

Edited by The Dog House
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madcat Experienced

madcat

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Posted

Truly sad, I feel sorry for the families left behind.

 

I've ended up in the cut a few times, each time off the bank not the boat. I can climb up the rudder so I never have the boat in gear unless I'm stood in the door on the step. Its way harder if you are wearing full winter clothing .

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deckhand Proficient

deckhand

Posted
Posted

This is so sad and my thoughts are with family and friends affected by this tragic loss.

When my husband fell in Stenson Lock, we were helped by a guy who made a loop in one of our ropes, enough for my hubby to put his foot in. The guy looped the rope around the tiller arm to be able to apply leverage. Hubby then put foot in loop and pulled on rope. with a little assistance, hubby was able to pull himself onto the boat. And yes, it is very underrated as to the impact of falling in the water, fully clothed. The shock and cold and the weight of wet clothes can be debilitating very quickly.

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