CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE: CCRRASH!

CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE: CCRRASH!

There we were, just relaxing in the salon of Slow Motion after a 5 and ½ hour jaunt from Southport to Myrtle Beach, when suddenly a large boat appeared right next to our portside and CCRRASH! The boat turned into Slow Motion, hitting the portside and continued to go forward, hitting Slow Motion’s wood pulpit (where the anchor is stored). This boat, the Spirit of Whitby II, was coming into the dock at the Barefoot Marina to get fuel. Somehow the captain, Brian Orr, totally misjudged where he was when he turned into the dock, and he turned into Slow Motion instead. Even on her worst day Slow motion cannot be mistaken for a fueling dock. We raced out on deck to assess the damage and try to prevent any further damage.

The wooden pulpit was pushed out of position, and the right side of the board is split. The paint has been scraped off too. We haven’t been able to check out the portside, since we are tied up on the starboard side, but we hope that the small rubber strip that runs along the portside saved Slow Motion from any body damage. It looks like the wooden pulpit will have to be replaced. When you look at all the bolts that attach it to the fiberglass body and at the anchor stored in the middle, you start calculating the labor costs – and you’re right back at the definition of BOAT – Break Out Another Thousand – for any boat repair.

After assessing our damage, the Admiral and I went to get identifying information from the captain of the Spirit of Whitby II. The dock master came to us, as we went to the other boat. He told us that the captain of the other boat was clearly at fault. Once his boat hit our pulpit and anchor, the dockmaster tried to prevent further damage by pushing the boat away from our boat. He said the captain tried to blame him for “not telling him how strong the wind was.” With that statement, we knew we were not dealing with someone who takes responsibility for his own negligent actions. Nevertheless, we approached the captain, Brian Orr, a citizen of the U.K., and merely asked for identification. He was busy pumping gas into his boat, so he said “Go away. Come back in about 20 minutes, when you can be polite. Give me some space.” We had not been impolite, but we were perhaps a bit taken aback by the fact that Captain Orr had not offered an apology of any sort. And we were asking for his ID, because he had not even introduced himself. Naturally, getting gas into his boat’s gas tanks was more important to him than the damage he had caused to a fellow boater.

When you think about what could have happened if the Whitby Captain had just been civilized to us, what an opportunity was missed just to exchange information, report the matter to our respective insurance companies and go on our way. The dock master was stunned by the Whitby Captain’s rudeness. He told us that when there is an accident and the damage to a boat is more than $500 the accident has to be reported to the Department of Natural Resources of South Carolina. Twenty minutes later Dep. Chacana arrived and took statements from everyone. The dock master wrote a succinct statement placing the blame for the accident squarely on the shoulders of the Whitby Captain. This was sufficient for Dep. Chacana to cite the captain for negligent operation of a boat. The fine was $110.00, and this being South Carolina, it had to be paid in cash or the captain would have to go to jail. We don’t know the outcome, but the deputy did return to our boat after taking our statements to ask if we knew the location of an ATM nearby. I hope the captain can muster up $110.00. He was negligent, irresponsible and rude, but should not go to jail for what he did. Then, of course, if this captain did not insure himself against causing accidents to other boaters, maybe jail is where he belongs. We forgot to get his insurance information, or he “forgot” to give it to us.

What I did find out from Captain Orr while we waited for the DNR Deputy was that he has traveled 27,000 miles in Spirit of Whitby II. He has done the Great Loop. He has cruised on Lake Michigan, where in two weeks, he says, “they” had just 2 days of good weather. He has been up and down the Atlantic Coast, spent time around Boston and in the Florida Keys (2008). This winter he is headed for Gasparilla (?) near Ft. Myers and Venice, Florida. He had just cruised south to Myrtle Beach from Carolina Beach. He was basically extolling his credentials as a boat captain. However, as to this accident with Slow Motion, he admitted to me that he had misjudged the wind – he actually admitted fault. He said he had been steering from up above,  where he was able to judge the wind, but then he went below and he lost his ability to judge the wind (his words), and that is why he crashed into Slow Motion. He offered this explanation, but no apology. He noted that it was merely an accident, could have been much worse, and nothing to be very concerned about. He had shattered the center starboard window on his boat, when he crashed into the anchor and pulpit. But he said windows can be easily replaced. He did not ask about the damage to Slow Motion or whether we thought it would be “easy” to repair it.

Life is apparently simple for the Whitby Captain. Cause an accident, repair your boat, move on. There is no human factor in this equation, no understanding of how his reckless actions have affected other people and no inclination to apologize for his carelessness. Ever meet anyone like this? I’m sure we all have. In thirty years as a prosecutor, most of the defendants I met accepted no responsibility for their criminal actions and certainly had no empathy for the crime victims. Personal responsibility is not “popular” among the crooks, nor has it been embraced by the biggest wealth amassers in our society (exceptions: Bill Gates, Warren Buffet). Put people out of work to “leverage” a business, increase its debt, force it into bankruptcy – but make that humongous profit – that’s not “their” fault. That’s the free market at work. Right. Profit rules. Personal responsibility loses. That’s not a society I want to live in. We need a sense of community, where everyone feels responsible for the welfare of everyone else. We need responsible boat captains, just like we need responsible citizens in all walks of life. Accidents do happen, that’s for sure, but when you’re at fault, please just apologize and make it right. Thank you.