September 2009 Pender Post article:

Canadian Coast Guard Auxiliary Unit 20

What better way for a teen aged boy to spend a summer holiday than camping on an island in the Salish Sea.  The campground was situated on a thickly wooded bluff about 200 feet above the sparkling waters of the cove.  The boy was part of a group of 11 children who were planning to spend a week on this wilderness paradise.  The day started well and after lunch the boy along with a small group of other campers decided to scramble down the steep rocky trail to the water.  Not long after the group reached the beach the boy decided he would climb up a small cliff.  He almost reached the top when a rock outcrop under his foot gave way and he tumbled 8 feet onto the rocks below.  As he landed he heard a sharp crack followed by an excruciating pain in his right leg.  Then a wave of nausea rolled over him like a thick fog.  He knew he could not make it up the steep slope to the camp and asked another boy to run back to the camp so the supervisor could call for help.

We attended a similar incident recently and assisted the a local Fire and Rescue team and the Coast Guard in stabilizing the victim and loading him for transport for further medical attention.

The rugged beauty of the coastlines in the Salish Sea tempts many boaters to leave their vessels and explore inland.  When doing so it is important to ensure that the vessel is securely moored and to use caution when transiting steep rocky slopes that abound on our islands.  An injury in an inaccessible location can result in emergency personnel having to make a difficult and potentially dangerous rescue.  In the case described above the boy landed on a rocky ledge less and 2 meters from the water that fortunately made the rescue fairly straightforward.
Bob Vergette
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August 2009 Pender Post article:

Canadian Coast Guard Auxiliary Unit 20

It had been a sunny and warm mid summer’s day with a light breeze pushing the newly acquired 25 foot sailboat effortlessly through the light seas of Plumper Sound.  After a fun day on the water the man suggested they spend the night at anchor in Browning Harbour. 

Once the anchor was set the woman commenced checking the rigging while her husband started to prepare dinner.  He had only fired up the alcohol stove once before and found it a bit tricky to start.  After a second failed attempt he decided to read the instructions and soon had the burner lit.  He noted that with an alcohol stove there is almost no visible flame but it produced a good heat and soon the sage spiced salmon was sizzling in the pan.

Once cooked he put the rice on but soon noticed there was no heat coming from the burner and it seemed that the flame had gone out.  A little investigation determined that the stove had run out of fuel but that was no problem because he had remembered pack a spare can.  As the man started to pour the alcohol into the stove he inadvertently spilled a small amount onto the hot burner and soon his shirt sleeves were on fire as were the nearby seat cushions.  It was only the quick thinking of the woman, who had taken fire extinguisher training, which prevented a major tragedy from occurring.

As it was the man had to be evacuated to medical attention to treat the serious burns to his arms and chest.

While some of the circumstances of the incident were changed, your local Coast Guard Auxiliary recently attended a sailboat that was set afire by misuse of an alcohol stove.  Any boater with such a stove should carefully follow the operating instructions so it can be used safely.  In addition to the alcohol stove fire, we attended a far more serious fire on a larger sailboat were the vessel was totally consumed and sank.  Fortunately the two occupants of the vessel escaped to their dinghy.  All we could do when we arrived at the scene was to watch as the vessel burned to the waterline and sank.

There are few incidents more serous than fire on a vessel at sea.  The vessel is the platform that separates a mariner from the cold waters of our Salish Sea, and if there is a fire that cannot be quickly controlled there is little choice but to abandon ship.
We urge all boaters to think about fire safety this summer and ensure their vessels are equipped with the correct size and number of fire extinguishers as specified in the Safe Boating Guide.

Bob Vergette

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July 2009 Pender Post Article:

Canadian Coast Guard Auxiliary Unit 20

In the January article we announced that Unit 20 had purchased a new high-speed response vessel.  As a reminder the vessel, as shown in the photograph, is a Titan 249 XL tee top and provides significantly more rescue capability with its higher speed and larger size.  We have utilized the new vessel for a number of rescue missions and it performs very much as we had expected.  The Unit is proud of its new vessel and we want to let everyone share in the excitement so we are having an open house on July 11 at the Hope Bay Government Dock.  The event will start with a dedication of the new vessel at 11:00 AM and the open house will continue up until 2:00 PM.  We hope that everyone will come out to help us celebrate and enjoy cake and refreshments.

Bob Vergette