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Old 01-28-2016, 02:41 PM   #141
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Captain.

They repeatedly list it as family of six, crew of six, and one captain. Don't ask me why they just don't call it family of six and crew of seven.
Thanks. I just didn't see the Captain referenced in the article.
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Old 01-29-2016, 07:56 AM   #142
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120 foot expedition yacht sinks off Fort Lauderdale

I'm always cautious about rushing to judgement in cases like this, however, even if all the facts are never revealed, there is at least one good lesson here. Based on the first officer's comments, the chain of events went something like this, ‘We noticed a list, the captain went below to check the bilges and reported flooding, we got the owners into the first life raft. It happened pretty quickly’.

If that's true, high water alarms either weren't present or they weren't operational. It takes more than a small amount of water to cause a vessel of this displacement to list, and as such I'd expect alarms to have sounded. Because of the water depth, over 1,200 feet, the vessel is beyond salvage, which means it's unlikely we'll ever know exactly what occurred.

Regardless of what transpired in this case, if you haven't tested your high water alarms, and bilge pumps lately, do so. The most effective, real-world test involves controlled flooding of bilges, allowing rising, preferably fresh, water to set off alarms and trigger pumps (be sure to include crash or high volume, higher mounted pumps in the test). Simply lifting the float switch to confirm the pump runs is of limited value.

A few years ago I inspected a 60+ foot vessel that was equipped with four 3700 gph electric bilge pumps. When "tested", every pump ran and the owner reported he did this periodically. However, every pump discharge was equipped with a bronze swing check valve located adjacent to the pump, used to prevent back flooding and pump short cycling. Fortuitously, while I was aboard a fresh water hose burst, flooding one of the bilges. The electric pump in that compartment dutifully kicked in and began running, however, I noticed that while there was turbulence around the pump, the water level wasn't dropping. I went on deck and looked at the discharge, and was surprised to see no stream of water. Upon closer inspection I determined that the weight of the water between the check valve and the overboard discharge was great enough to prevent the pump from being able to overcome it upon start up. This is an especially insidious problem in that the first time the pump was tested, with a dry hose presumably, it would work, however, once water became trapped in that hose, the pump would not be able to discharge water thereafter. And thereafter, if the pump was “tested” by simply lifting the float switch, it would indeed run. For this and other reasons, I have strong reservations regarding check valves in bilge pump discharge plumbing. These check valves are also prone to become seized either in the open or closed position. ABYC guidelines prohibit the use of check valves in pump discharge plumbing if it is the sole means of preventing back flooding from other pumps or common manifolds.
In testing I've done, I've determined that some check valve designs, the swing gate variety, can reduce water flow by as much as 60%.


Here are two links to articles about the sinking...

Superyacht Serena III sank on 13 nautical miles off Fort Lauderdale | Maritime News

The video interview is viewable here

VIDEO: Yacht sinks off Fort Lauderdale coast | Trade Only Today
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Old 01-29-2016, 08:08 AM   #143
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Also discussed here:
http://www.trawlerforum.com/forums/s...ale-24385.html
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Old 01-29-2016, 08:15 AM   #144
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Greetings,
Mr. SD. Thanks for the news information. Hmmm...raises a LOT of questions. Bottom line-all aboard safe.
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Old 01-29-2016, 10:15 AM   #145
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Further to Steve D's comments, A good friend of mine had his 36' sailboat sink at the dock. Luckily, the security is good enough that he was called when the low in the water position was noted and was able to get the boat secured before it went to the bottom. The insurance investigator determined that it was a failure of a check valve in the discharge line from the bilge pump that was the problem. Everything was fixed, without re-installing a check valve and the boat sails still.
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Old 01-29-2016, 02:02 PM   #146
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Further to Steve D's comments, A good friend of mine had his 36' sailboat sink at the dock. Luckily, the security is good enough that he was called when the low in the water position was noted and was able to get the boat secured before it went to the bottom. The insurance investigator determined that it was a failure of a check valve in the discharge line from the bilge pump that was the problem. Everything was fixed, without re-installing a check valve and the boat sails still.
So where was the water coming in from?
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Old 01-29-2016, 02:27 PM   #147
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So where was the water coming in from?
Aha, cutting to the chase.
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Old 01-29-2016, 02:30 PM   #148
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So where was the water coming in from?
The ocean.
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Old 01-29-2016, 02:45 PM   #149
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The ocean.
Unless of course the boat was on a lake, river or a sea.
:-)
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Old 01-29-2016, 02:50 PM   #150
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Spy, with all due respect I disagree. The water was not coming from the ocean. It was coming from the hole in the boat.
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Old 01-29-2016, 02:58 PM   #151
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Spy, with all due respect I disagree. The water was not coming from the ocean. It was coming from the hole in the boat.
When you enter your house, do you enter from the door, or do you enter from outside?

I enter through the door, from outside.

[end pedantic silliness]
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Old 01-29-2016, 03:01 PM   #152
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I stand corrected
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Old 01-29-2016, 03:08 PM   #153
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"So where was the water coming in from?"

The discharge line, which was submerged at its exit. The pump must also have failed.
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Old 01-29-2016, 03:22 PM   #154
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In the televised report, the 1st. Officer stated that they suspected that one of the stabilizers was damaged when leaving Bahia Mar Marina, allowing water to ingress.
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Old 01-29-2016, 05:48 PM   #155
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In the televised report, the 1st. Officer stated that they suspected that one of the stabilizers was damaged when leaving Bahia Mar Marina, allowing water to ingress.
There are a number of problems with that theory.
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