Flooding: Planning for hopefully something that will never happen to you!

Introduction by Director/Port Captain Dee McClure 

Each of us have long to-do lists as we start preparing our minds and boats for spring launch.  Everything from the standard impeller change to rigging check and other items that might not have been completed at haul out.  Do your preparations include a strategy and maintenance checklist for a flooding situation… i.e., the boat is sinking?    

If you cruise anywhere away from a dock (and as a GLCC member, we hope you do!), then it’s prudent to have a go-to game plan and strategy for a flooding event.  Trying to come up with one during an event – perhaps in the middle of Lake Michigan – is asking for disaster.   

Having a ditch bag is not a flooding strategy! Abandoning ship means there is not a way to stop the ingress of water and the vessel cannot be saved.  However, with some care, planning and PRACTICE, you can establish a strategy that can quickly identify WHERE the problem is and HOW to address it and “ditch the ditch” (i.e., save the vessel).  Preparing for events, like flooding, could make the difference between saving or losing the boat. 

For more than 20 years, the GLCC members Dick and Ginger Stevenson’s have been exploring the world and sharing their experiences.   In the article (HERE), Dick walks us through the realities of creating a flooding plan and shares S/V Alchemy’s Flooding Plan.  The article was first published in the Voyages Magazine by Cruising Club of America (CCA).  The article is provided with compliments of Dick Stevenson and CCA to support and promote cruising. 

Also, checkout Dick and Ginger's cruising blog with pictures from their cruising adventures at https://virginiastevenson.smugmug.com/  

 Enjoy!