Those of you who attended the Squadron’s movie series last winter will remember the movie – White Squall. It concerned the unexpected and tragic sinking of the brigantine style training ship The Albatross. A short summary of the movie and the real life story can be found at the earlier post.

This movie is brought to mind by the similarly tragic sinking of the HMS Bounty as it crossed the path of Hurricane Sandy. The cause of the sinking is easily understood, a hurricane, rather than a mystery, as it was with a presumed white squall that hit The Albatross. Fortunately the crew of the HMS Bounty saw what was coming and were better prepared. There is only one reported death, although it seems the captain who is missing, most likely has perished. Even survival suits and life jackets can only provide a limited amount of protection when we move into late October temperatures.

This type of accident is not supposed to happen, but it does much too often. That’s why we need to know how to operate our boats, why we need to carry at least the legally mandated safety equipment, and why we should always have a rehearsed plan for handling an on-water accident/disaster.

It’s time to think about getting the knowledge you need to operate your boat safely. That means much more than just having ‘The Card’. We’ll soon be posting information on the courses that will be offered by the Parry Sound Power and Sail Squadron in 2013. Register, learn to boat more safely, and have fun out on the water.