—Continued from previous page

As he lay there we could not see any movement. Exhaustion, shock and relief had
taken its toll on his body. His pulse was weak, but we could not see any visible signs
of severe injury.

We were making good time and only thinking about getting to medical help when
a southbound sailboat passed our port side about 20 metres off. What we saw
made us gasp — a man on the foredeck, one hand on his hip and the other one
holding onto a furled headsail. He had on only his swim trunks. The people in the
cockpit were engaged in conversation and not looking forward. Had he fallen, by
the time his friends noticed he was missing their boat might have moved far enough
that he would no longer be visible. If he only knew what had just transpired a few
miles back!

It was at least an hour before the young man made a slight movement with one
foot thus giving us a sign that he was, with luck, going to be fine. Time seemed to
slow down for the next hour as we made our way to Martinique.

Upon arriving at Ste. Anne we were requested by MRCC to go directly to the fuel
dock at Le Marin. As we were going up the channel, Ginny and John from Wind
Shepherd came alongside in their Alpha dinghy and John hopped aboard Shea-Lena
to help us with the docking, a much appreciated gesture. We gently moved the man,
who became a little more responsive and told us his name and who we could contact.
le said the gas had burnt his skin. He had hung onto those gas jugs for his life and
e smelt like something discharged from a tanker, but the bottom line is they kept
im alive. Jim tried to call his friend but the signal was not strong enough to keep a
onnection. We told him we would call later.

At 12:30 we reached the dock and we were met by the Gendarmerie Nationale and
the Sapeurs Pompiers. A medical check, questions answered and the young man was
off to the hospital.
Once we were anchored, John and Ginny came on board with lunch. Spending the
time with friends this day was very special. Reflecting on what that young fisher-
man’s fate could have been made us realize that we should enjoy every moment of
life — and take steps to preserve ours, too. Jim and I were not wearing lifejackets or
using jack-lines when this incident occurred. The weather had been perfect, and we
felt very safe in our floating home. It was daytime and we could see the next island
ahead, only four hours away. Most of us take for granted that St. Lucia to Martinique
is an easy passage. We have now learned not to be totally comfortable and relaxed,
even on a short crossing. Why are we more lax when we are sailing during the day

too

Q

 

than at night? At night

we wear lifejackets, we're tethered to our jack-lines, no one

leaves the cockpit without the other topside. Day sailing is different because...?

That evening we called

the young man’s friend again. The connection was better so

we filled him in on all the details and his status as we knew it. We were then informed
that there had been two men aboard the pirogue; the missing fisherman was 18 years

old. Our hearts pounded
and the sadness of the
Today is January 8th

with conflicting feelings — the joy of knowing we saved a life
loss of another. We only saw one person, only one!
and yesterday seems surreal. Neither Jim nor I had a peace-

ful night’s sleep. So many boats travel the path between St. Lucia and Martinique
every day and the thought that people had been in the water and had not been seen

by anyone was terrifyin:

g.

Looking back, so many things were done right, yet so many wrong. Then there were

the unknown factors. H

ere are some things we learned:

¢ “HELLO” carries a long way
¢ A bright yellow lifejacket is fairly easy to see

¢ Waving of arms can

be noticed above the waves

 

 

e¢ 200 metres is not

ar, but much farther away a person in the water probably

would not be seen or heard

¢ You may or may not be able to employ proper MOB rescue procedures

¢ Make sure your engine will start and you are able to handle your boat in
unfavorable seas

¢ Make sure your chart plotter cursor is on “ship position” not “destination”

¢ Once unconscious, even a slight man becomes extremely heavy

¢ This fisherman had his fly down

¢ The victim’s info conflicted with his friend’s. Delusional?

¢ Medical services in Martinique are the best

¢ Wear lifejackets and make sure you are tethered to jack-lines once out of the cockpit

¢ If swamped or capsized, stay with the boat as long as possible

¢ KEEP A WATCH. The young fisherman we rescued is 25 years old and has much
more life to live because we KEPT A WATCH.

 

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