HOW STUPID DO WE NEED TO BE?

[Davey B]

Whoa, thanks Alan, Leon and Newt - Sites most helpful and of to find me a lil' dutch girl in clogs to help me translate Alan's suggested site :cool:

[Davey B]

Alan Taylor:

...or just meteo.nl and grope around.

Precisely why I need a dutch girl

 

[ 29. October 2002, 10:16 PM: Message edited by: Davey B ]

[John S]

Ian Bass:

He was described in the local media as a hero, well I'm sorry I can think of a four letter word for him starts with P, ends with T and has RA in the middle. :mad:

I'm sorry, but I cannot agree with you there. He saw two people (aka, idiots) in danger, and put his own life at risk to save them.

 

He may not have thought about the danger he was putting himself into, maybe he was only thinking about trying to save their lives.

 

I would like to think of him as being selfless in his actions, definitely not a fool.

[Davey B]

John S:

 

I would like to think of him as being selfless in his actions, definitely not a fool.

Personally, I have nothing but complete

admiration for the unpaid crews of the RNLI that wouldn’t hesitate to risk their own life’s to save someone’s that they don't know and the fact that person may get into danger themselves does not make him or her a fool as far as I can see.

 

I would despair if I were a family member of the man that drowned only to read the posting that prompted this thread and hear of your loved one called a prat.

 

Hope you never have to rely on a "prat" pulling you from a fire or from the sea. Cos it won't be me. But then again I probably would.

[Ian Bass]

Davey B, I agree with you wholeheartedly about the RNLI I have nothing but admiration for them, however, under NO circumstances would I put my life in danger by going into a rough sea to rescue a couple on drunken prats. I have a great deal of experience with these matters as I have a Teachers Certificate in lifesaving which I have held for many years. Also in my previous occupation I have had to rescue and attempt to rescue people who, from there own stupidity have got themselves into trouble, usually because of alcohol ( but thats another problem ) I think this lad in Blackpool saw the headline 'HERO' and went into a rough sea. Aparently he had done this before and pulled someone out of a fire and been on the front page of the paper for it. Going back to my first lifesaving training day I was taught Do not enter the water if you can 1, Reach 2, Throw 3, SAFELY wade to a person in trouble, Well item 3 is out and there are lifebelts every 50 yards. He just saw the headlines. I still stand by the word PRAT!!!!

[Alan Taylor]

John S:

.

Davy and John S/all,

 

I agree with both with you up to a point (for what its worth).

We are looking at this tragedy with 20/20 hind site. A lot of if's here, if he had known they were drunken idiots, would he have taken the same action? We will never know.

 

Can't we just put a brave (possibly misguided) man to rest and learn from his tragic death?

 

Sorry, I am not a moderator but this is upsetting me quite a bit as does all unnecessary loss of life.

 

Peace brother anglers.

 

Alan(nl)

[rufus]

I think if I had been present when my brother got into difficulties I would not have hesitated to jump in after him...but I would have tried to find something on the beach with some bouyancy first, something to hold on to.

If I came across a stranger in the same situation then I would think twice before putting my own life at peril...tho you can't be sure what you will do in the heat of the moment.

I think every sea angler should carry a mobile and a loud whistle attached to a lanyard in the top pocket of his jacket, waterproofed if possible (does anyone know of any waterproofing measures for mobiles?) and also remember that an upturned bait bucket , an empty flask, even a tackle box could save a life.

[Davey B]

Ian mate, I saw the point that you were making, maybe it was just the harshness in which your posting came accross - sensetive wallflower that I am - however since you have gone into more detal regarding the life belts, that does put a slightly different angle on things - Although tragic nonetheless.

[Vagabond]

rufus:

A notice explaining the principles behind rips would have saved his life.

 

Tragedy is, that it is quite possible to survive a rip tide. You just have to go with it, float out until the power dissipates and then swim around it and back to the beach. If you struggle you lose.

So sorry to hear about that rufus.

 

The dangers on tropical beaches are not always obvious to someone born and bred in Britain.

 

Rip tides can be particularly strong where a submerged coral reef fringes the shore - it is the GAPS in the reef that set up the rip. Lots of water comes over the whole reef as the wave comes in - but as it goes out, the gaps are the main outlet.

 

Sometimes the rips only operate at certain states of the tide, so that a harmless beach can turn into a dangerous one.

 

We get rip currents in Britain, but not as fierce as these tropical ones.

[Donner und Blitzen]

Rufus,

 

here you can see a waterproof bag for your mobile. You don´t have to open the bag to use the mobile. I´m using the aquapac for years and I´m happy with it.

 

Donner und Blitzen

 

[ 30. October 2002, 05:55 PM: Message edited by: Donner und Blitzen ]