On-Water Risk…Weather Happens

Photo By Pamela Doty | On-Water Risk...Weather Happens Blog Header Picture  

UNITED STATES

09.29.2021

Story by Pamela Doty 

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Water Safety

A pop-up thunderstorm endangered the lives of 31 people riding on a commercial duck boat in Missouri, and 17 of them lost their lives back in 2018. That is probably one of the worst boating incidents that involved weather in recent years, but there have been many others. Checking the weather before going out on any type of vessel, and checking it during your outing, are both critical because thunderstorms often seem to come out of nowhere. In 2021, the promoters of the Life Jackets Worn…Nobody Mourns campaign asked people to share their life jacket survivor stories. The true stories we’re sharing in this blog are from three people who survived weather incidents on the water, thanks to their life jackets.

Christy Mitchell, from Sidon, MS shared, “One night my husband and I went frog grabbing after it had stormed that day. The weather was supposed to be clear that night so we took our boat out on the lake, and then it started raining. A few minutes later, after we tried to get between trees to keep the rain from beating on us, it started hailing and out of nowhere wind came upon us at approximately 60 mph. We had to get out of the trees because you could hear branches breaking off and there was really nowhere to get on the bank. We decided to brave it back across the lake holding on for dear life as it seemed to take us forever to get across the lake, all while we couldn't see as we were getting torrential rain, hail, and strong wind that we could barely stay in the boat. There were others on the lake that had just reached the landing before us and helped us keep the boat steady to get out. We learned later that we had possibly been in a path that a tornado took. I know, without a doubt, that our life jackets saved us. We never got in the water, but if we would have, we would have drowned from the 3-foot waves without those life jackets. The life jackets also kept a lot of the wind, rain, and hail from beating our bodies that night.”

Holly Harpe, from Carrollton, GA shared a picture of a typical kayak outing of theirs that we used in the header image for this blog. She said, “We kayak mostly in the summer. I always wear my life jacket and make my teenagers wear theirs. We became stranded at Glover Island at Crooked River State Park during a pop-up thunderstorm. The calm water suddenly became very violent and the wind was pushing us back. At one point, I had fallen out and was scared for my life. I was glad to have on my life jacket and be in a group. Anytime we whitewater raft we are required to wear a life jacket and for good reason. Whitewater is dangerous. Even if we are just on flat-water kayaking, stand-up paddle boarding, or just floating down the river on a tube, we always wear our life jackets.”

Kathy Hinchey, Poquoson, VA shared, “My boyfriend (now husband, Barry) had invited me and one other person to go sailing one afternoon. A summer thunderstorm popped up while we were sailing in the Chesapeake Bay and a water spout capsized the boat. Two of us were thrown overboard while Barry managed to hold on the mast and remain with the boat. Because of the high wind and driving rain the boat was pushed over 100 yards away. The boat could not be sailed because the sails had ripped and the rudder was broken when it capsized. We did not have our life jackets on at the time of the accident, but Barry managed to get to them from inside the cabin. He jumped overboard with them. He saved our lives. We were able to hold onto the life jackets while battling 3 to 4 foot swells driving wind and rain for over 2 hours until we were rescued by the Coast Guard. I was an experienced swimmer and had taken life guard training in the past, but there was no way anyone could have stayed afloat without the help of a flotation device under those weather conditions. Barry saved our lives that day. We married 2 years later and have been married for 21 years. We have a 17-year old son who graduates high school this spring. We continue to enjoy recreational activities on the water, but we always, always, always wear a life jacket, rain or shine.”

Many people were not as fortunate as those in these stories because they didn’t wear a life jacket. Thanks to Christy Mitchell, Holly Harpe, and Kathy Hinchey for sharing their survival stories. Hopefully, these incidents will help remind you to check the weather before you go, and regularly when you’re out on the water, and to always wear a life jacket when in, on, or near the water. Wearing a life jacket helps ensure that you can handle any unfortunate circumstances or weather that may come your way.

• Date Taken: 09.29.2021
• Date Posted: 09.29.2021 12:24
• Story ID: 406296
• Location: US