You may recall my writing about a deadly boat crash that took place in Skull Creek a few weeks ago.
Above is a screenshot taken from iSailor. I believe the boat ran into Skull Creek Daybeacon 7. Daybeacons are unlit.
The official report of the investigation into the crash by the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources has been released. An article summarizing the report as published in the Hilton Head newspaper, THE ISLAND PACKET, is below. I have screen shot it from Apple News +.
It is filled with bureaucratic irrelevances such as that the boat had a fire extinguisher and the required number of life jackets. I suppose that being bureaucrats they had to mention such things.
What I strongly disagree with is: "Investigators who authored the SCDNR crash report did not indicate any watercraft or human errors that contributed to the collision." Driving a boat at 30-39 mph at night on a relatively narrow twisting waterway with known unlit markers is human error as clearly proven by the crash itself.
I note with bemusement that the article is headed "Crime" and "No criminal charges to be filed" Who would they have been filed against? The man driving the boat at speed is dead.
I am surprised to learn the cost of the boat. I had no idea that a 23' power boat can sell for $100,.000.
That summers are hot in the marsh is not news. However like much of this country we are hotter than usual. Yesterday the high was 95F/35C which is 8F/4.4C above average for the day. Today is expected to be the same.
I checked the 'feels like' temperature yesterday afternoon in the Apple Weather app and was surprised to find it was only 98F. I took a short walk and it felt hotter to me despite an eight or nine knot breeze off the creek. So I checked the National Weather Service Hilton Head Airport site and discovered a heat index of 105F/40.5C. Quite a difference. I had thought that 'feels like' and heat index were the same. I googled and found out I was wrong.
It is now my understanding that heat index factors temperature and humidity. Feels like adds wind chill. The wind off Skull Creek yesterday had no chill, but presumably aided sweat evaporation.
Whatever the numbers, in the summers here I miss San Diego and the Bay of Islands.
2 comments:
I couldn't find the accident report online but if it doesn't have more detail it sounds like an awful job. The survivors had reported the accident occurred at exactly 9:17pm and one survivor immediately called 911. That was still nautical twilight with an hour and a half to moonset. The report says 9:45 though, which was only a few minutes after nautical twilight but still with a bit of moon. The report said good visibility. They were returning from dinner, and yet no toxicology report fromthe autopsy is noted. So alcohol can't be ruled out. And really odd that the report would say it had the requisite number of life jackets but not saying whether they were being worn (although self evidently they were not).
And that helicopter pattern looks like the Coast Guard was just to the north of the accident.
All in all, really odd.
Reportedly they had dinner at the Dockside Restaurant which is on Skull Creek a mile south of our condo. The crash occurred a mile north of our condo. The deceased couple’s residence was in Bluffton which is on the mainland south and west of the Dockside restaurant, so they did not head directly home after dining. The crash occurred near the mouth of Skull Creek. At 30+ mph that is four minutes or less from the Dockside. The crash occurred as the boat was heading south on Skull Creek which is back in. I conclude that they took a ride perhaps out on Port Royal Sound and were returning.
It is definitely dark here at 9:17 PM.
And I, too, note the lack of any statement about testing for alcohol.
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