Boat Aground In Patong

[LivinginKata]

Pol Sgt Payong Chitsombat of the Tourist Police office in Patong told the Gazette that Patong Municipality had already offered the Briton free use of a tractor to free the vessel from the sand.

However, the cash-strapped Brit declined the offer after being told he would have to hire a large boat to tow the vessel back out into the bay at high tide, Sgt Payong said.

"It can't be moved by heavy equipment alone, but also needs to be towed out by another vessel," he said.

Mr Wilson had told the Gazette earlier, "I have no money to pay to refloat the yacht, and in my country if an accident like this happens there is no need to pay any money, too."

Officials continued to bring Wilson food and have left phone numbers so they can be contacted for more help.

I spoke with Wilson yesterday and he is pretty annoyed with that statement about officials bringing food. He claims they have brought no food, and a small guesthouse/bar along the south end of the beach are supplying him with food & beer.

I don't agree with his idea that the UK authority would refloat a grounded boat free of charge.

[Mid]

christ , free beer why move ?

[chinthee]

christ , free beer why move ?

It's too bad Bendix doesn't hang out in the Phuket forum. I'll bet he would liven up this thread.

[bino]

hey bino , you friends with this guy ?

Never met the guy- I'm in Bangkok and haven't been down to Patong to meet the guy and try to help him out.

There are tons of variables that I (we) don't know at play here. I'm not completely convinced that the chain was cut. (Can't picture someone in a dinghy with a hacksaw bobbing around in the rolling seas trying to cut the chain. A big set of bolt cutters maybe...) The chain may well have been insufficient / too small or old and unreliable to hold his yacht in the conditons and broken.

It wouldn't surprise me in the least if his fuel tanks were dry. I don't see a solar panel or a wind generator in the pictures, and I doubt his 38 foot yacht has a dedicated genset, so he may well have used up his fuel to charge the batteries offshore. Dropping the anchor would be sensible thing to do instead of trying to navigate an unfamiliar leeward coast under sail alone in the dark with no electronics or engine.

He could have chosen to stay far offshore and heave-to until conditons improved or daylight arrived to make landfall, which would have been a sensible option also.

Simply put, I don't know how well found his yacht and equipment are or anything about his seamanship skills, and I suspect that you don't either. As such- it is difficult to say what you or I would have done if we were him. For us to debate about it is all pure conjecture.

I do agree that the guy might not be such a great seaman- especially if he thinks that the British government is in the Yacht rescue business.

There is a picture in the Phuket Gazette website of Mr. Wilson showing the anchor chain to a tourist police officer. I'm curious to know if any of the guys in Phuket that have been down there to try and help the guy have seen the anchor chain... does it show a nice clean bite of a bolt cutter?

[Mid]

appreciate you time in that reply ,

As such- it is difficult to say what you or I would have done if we were him

not true , unlike your good self , I am aware of the reasons one doesn't anchor on a lee-shore !!

[bino]

not true , unlike your good self , I am aware of the reasons one doesn't anchor on a lee-shore !!

So- if you were him... making a landfall at night after a 17 day singlehanded passage, what would you have done?

[Mid]

thanxs for the question , I've been waiting for that .

First and for most I wouldn't be making a landing at night in an unknown anchorage .

Secondly , I wouldn't select a lee shore as an anchorage ,

especially when a couple of hrs more would take me to a protected anchorage .

[LivinginKata]

not true , unlike your good self , I am aware of the reasons one doesn't anchor on a lee-shore !!

So- if you were him... making a landfall at night after a 17 day singlehanded passage, what would you have done?

I would have planned to arrive about day break, or stand off a long ways from land rather than make a night landfall. Grabbed a couple of hours kip while well out a sea. Studied the charts, and made direct for a safe anchorage, in this case direct to the south end of the island and up the east side of Phuket Island. If you are gonna make a 17 day single handed passage, then you got to plan that you are well awake for the arrival .

I speak with some experience, after 8 years live aboard and mostly single handed sailing of my 36 ft ketch (my home ) in the western Med.

[LivinginKata]

Oops ... Mid jumped in before me, while I was making a thoughtful reply. I think Mid & I are singing the same song

[Mid]

absolutely

[bino]

Fair enough - I did say that staying offshore and heaving-to would be a sensible option.

[LivinginKata]

[There is a picture in the Phuket Gazette website of Mr. Wilson showing the anchor chain to a tourist police officer. I'm curious to know if any of the guys in Phuket that have been down there to try and help the guy have seen the anchor chain... does it show a nice clean bite of a bolt cutter?

Yes, I did closely examine remains of the anchor chain. The link remaining show no sign of failure, rubbing, or damage. It's obviously quite an old chain, and in my opinion not really man enough for a 38 ft boat. I have no idea how he came to the conclusion that the chain was cut.

[Mid]

the more I read about this ,

the more I think Mother Nature is giving this guy a message .

[Jai Dee]

High and dry

Six days after it washed up on the south end of Patong Beach, the 38-foot sailboat Sultan remains high and dry after several unsuccessful efforts to dislodge and re-float her.

The Sultan washed up on the south end of Patong Beach during a strong storm about 1 am on Tuesday.

Skipper Michael Wilson of the UK, who was asleep on the fiberglass vessel when it hit the shore, told the Gazette he had anchored off Patong after an exhausting 17-day solo sail across the stormy Indian Ocean from Sri Lanka.

Pol Sgt Payong Chitsombat of the Tourist Police office in Patong told the Gazette that Patong Municipality had already offered the Briton free use of a tractor to free the vessel from the sand.

However, the cash-strapped Brit declined the offer after being told he would have to hire a large boat to tow the vessel back out into the bay at high tide, Sgt Payong said.

“It can’t be moved by heavy equipment alone, but also needs to be towed out by another vessel,” he said.

Mr Wilson had told the Gazette earlier, “I have no money to pay to refloat the yacht, and in my country if an accident like this happens there is no need to pay any money, too.”

Officials continued to bring Wilson food and have left phone numbers so they can be contacted for more help.

“We don’t know what else to do to help him, because we have tried to organize everything as best we can. We also contacted the British Embassy, but it seems like he doesn’t want to take any action on his own,” said Sgt Payong said.

“If he leaves the yacht as it is now, it will suffer damage for sure. I don’t what is he thinking. [Thursday] night I went there again with British member of the Volunteer Tourist Police, but he acted as if there were no trouble at all,” he added.

Meanwhile, the beached sailboat continues to be a talking point among tourists, locals and resident expats.

“Maybe he will start a trend,” quipped one, noting that Wilson had set himself up with free-of-charge accommodation in an “absolute beachfront” location.

Source: Phuket Gazette - 23 June 2007

[qualtrough]

Small wonder that Thais sometimes form a poor impression of visitors. Here is an apparently penniless man who has no business taking a sailboat out in the open sea, spurning offers of assistance because they don't meet his exact requirements and he has no money, and falsely claiming that back home the government would give him a tow for free. The boat should be seized and sold, and the proceeds used to buy him a ticket home.

[LivinginKata]

Sure, back in the UK the local authorities would eventually salvage the boat, then impound is until the owner paid the salvage costs.

I think that's what will eventually happen here. Although it's a great tourist attraction. so I doubt the Tesiban will be in any hurry to move.

The guy has not even checked in with Immigration, and the office if just 10 minute walk down the beach. I mention this to him, but he was too busy to go. Not be long before he is in Immigration's jail.

I think this quote is very telling ......

“We don’t know what else to do to help him, because we have tried to organize everything as best we can. We also contacted the British Embassy, but it seems like he doesn’t want to take any action on his own,” said Sgt Payong said.

“If he leaves the yacht as it is now, it will suffer damage for sure. I don’t what is he thinking. [Thursday] night I went there again with British member of the Volunteer Tourist Police, but he acted as if there were no trouble at all,” he added.

End of quote, article Phuket Gazette

[bino]

It's obviously quite an old chain, and in my opinion not really man enough for a 38 ft boat. I have no idea how he came to the conclusion that the chain was cut.

Thanks for that Kata... if that is your opinion, then I would be inclined to believe that the chain simply broke, and no one cut him loose.

[Ping]

Call me the suspicious type, but has anyone checked out this guy's bona fides? The entire story sounds suspect. I am not suggesting that he is a villain, I am merely suggesting that the whole story is murky - a (presumably) expensive boat being captained by a man with (apparently) questionable seamanship qualities and few other resources, combined with his other behaviour. Have the boys in brown done a check with immigration but, more importantly, a check with British police (re him) and Sri Lanka police re him AND the boat (and not to forget Interpol).

(Edit - wonder what's inside the boat?)

[LivinginKata]

It's not an expensive boat, it's 35 years old, and looks it. He is just like another few thousand boat bums around the world, living out life they way they want. I expect he made a bad judgement anchoring off Patong Bay, and got caught out by that short period of unusually gusty winds. End of story....

[chinthee]

It's not an expensive boat, it's 35 years old, and looks it. He is just like another few thousand boat bums around the world, living out life they way they want. I expect he made a bad judgement anchoring off Patong Bay, and got caught out by that short period of unusually gusty winds. End of story....

yet...you were so quick to condemn those of us making jokes at his expense for having been so foolish so as to create a financial burden on others...

[LivinginKata]

Don't half get some prats on this forum

[chinthee]

Some people wilnever understand that there are loads of seafaring and landlubbing people that are just plain losers. I guess some seafarers on Phuket fall into the former category as knee jerkers.

[Ping]

Interesting. LivinginKata's posts were reasonable and respectful of others when he first started posting. Nothing wrong with a joke, but insulting people? Wonder what went wrong?

[chinthee]

Interesting. LivinginKata's posts were reasonable and respectful of others when he first started posting. Nothing wrong with a joke, but insulting people? Wonder what went wrong?

I never insulted anybody. In fact, I apologized for my initial joke comments, but having been in Phuket long enough, realized it was probably another loser sailor. Later, it was revealed, as usual, that the sailor was a bum. LivinginKata doesn't want to acknowledge that.

[qualtrough]

I don't fault this guy for having no money. What I don't like about his behavior is his being so fussy and complaining about the help being offered. From what I have read it seems to me the locals and the police have gone out of their way to offer a hand to this guy, and all he does is whine/whinge. If I was in that position I would certainly be grateful for any help, and I certainly wouldn't slag off the locals because of a mistaken belief that my own country moves boats for free. How obnoxious can you get?

[Ping]

Interesting. LivinginKata's posts were reasonable and respectful of others when he first started posting. Nothing wrong with a joke, but insulting people? Wonder what went wrong?

I never insulted anybody. In fact, I apologized for my initial joke comments, but having been in Phuket long enough, realized it was probably another loser sailor. Later, it was revealed, as usual, that the sailor was a bum. LivinginKata doesn't want to acknowledge that.

Chinthee I thought that your humorous comments were fine - I was directing MY comments at LivinginKata for referring to us as 'Prats' (which was uncalled for).

[Baan Kiki]

Why did he anchor on the west coast of Phuket during the south-west monsoon? Anchoring on a lee-shore was very foolish of him.

Why is he broke? Yachts cost money to run, what was he planning to eat? Isn't he insured?

Anyway, I hope he gets his boat off, very worrying having to sleep on Patong beach. Trouble is, if the sand has got hold of the keel, it'll take more than man-power to move her.

ELEPHANT !

[LivinginKata]

Ho hum....

You know, I usually always try to be respectfull and make thoughtfull posts. But sometimes the prats drag me down to their level I should know better

Also, bit of a difference bewteen a bum and a boat bum. A bum would not normally own any property and likely lives on the street. A boat bum usually owns his own boat (a home) and bums around the world on the sea, usually picking up odd jobs repairing richer folks boats. I don't say 'boat bum' in any disrespectfull way. I used to be one and I consider it a badge of honour, depicting an independent life style, at a minimal cost

[donna]

try to draaaaaaaag this back on topic folks and stop the name calling please. its getting a tad tedious.

[steve w]

so has it moved yet?and who is feederising him i would guess the girls in the komma bar .