View Single Post
  #55   Report Post  
posted to rec.boats.cruising
News f2s
 
Posts: n/a
Default Boat Safety - and thread arguments


"Dave" wrote in message
...
On 18 Apr 2006 08:21:00 -0700, "

said:

The stats until recently did not separate out
"overboards" that were struck by Propellers or the drownings
that were
caused after being struck by a propeller but the primary cause
of death
is the drowning.


You may limit your answer to my question to the period for which
the more
detailed numbers you presumably have are available.


Dave,

I think your answer, if not directly available, can be implied by
the stat I quoted on an earlier date:

-------------------------------------------
Boats (12,000,000 - of which sail and Aux sail 40%)

Deaths pa 800 (5 times as many injuries)
0.25 per 100,000 of population
7 per 100,000 boats
2.8 per 10,000,000 hours (heroic assumption; 250hrs per boat pa)
However: sailboats are only 1% of deaths!
-------------------------------------------

It would be reasonable to assume that if sail and auxiliary sail
boats represented 40% of the fleet, but only 1% of the deaths,
then deaths (and severe injury for that matter) due to props on
these vessels are not significant.

And surely that's the point. There may be a target group in which
prop guards make economic sense - small motor vessels?

But perhaps there's much better value for money educating peple to
use lifejackets and buoyancy aids - whose lack is one of the
biggest contributions to death on the water.

The other major contribution - alcohol - has been tackled in cars
through draconian punishment. Very difficult to apply in the pure
leisure field of boating!
--
JimB
http://www.jimbaerselman.f2s.com/
Describing some Greek and Spanish cruising areas