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Sailing is all about the Weather.
Big into the exploration of Atlantic Hurricanes since Katrina came uninvited into his world, James (Jim) Gurley (JamesG161) has followed every Tropical Storm birthed in Atlantic, Gulf and Caribbean waters since. Being a boater, he knows that we often need more time to prepare than we get from the TV weather folk. Jim relies on the science of storm development to share early warning info with friends and fellow boaters.
Early in 2018, Jim and John Shepard, (JSSailem) started to chat about the weather data available. John asked Jim to help forecast Pacific NW storms, and this morphed into discussions on weather forecasting.For John, sailing in the PNW is sometimes hit and miss. One day is ugly, then a string of beautiful days but no wind, followed by a series of blue-sky days and 12 knot breezes. Being ready for those great sailing days means you need to look to the Pacific Ocean and what is brewing. John has been into Pacific NW Weather since the 1970’s when his first PNW November storm hit bringing more than 40 days and 40 nights of continual rain.
Together we want to share information, new APPs, safety, and thoughts about letting the weather help you. Identify some of the resources for sailors and help prepare you for your next sailboat outing.It is far better to go out on the water knowing what to expect in weather terms, than to be out on the water and see dark ominous clouds suddenly appear, unprepared.
Hurricane Sally <--- TS Sally
- Thread starter JamesG161
- Start date
Looking at the floating pier, it looks like it was a finger pier that was not secured by any pilings on the floating part itself? I don't see any points of attachement or "holes" where pilings would have been placed. Is that the case? If so, I'm not at all surprised the floating pier broke free. That's a lot of torque on the attachment points on the floating pier.
The fear on LI was that a floating dock would float off the poles. There were sometimes "Hurricane Poles" which were extra long and put deeper into the mud and were higher.
It isn't clear to me how this floating dock was attached to shore.
In June I did a delivery of a Tartan 37 - good boat! I'm sorry yours is damaged. Viewers who wonder what's inside their rudders should have a look at the pic of the stern.
It isn't clear to me how this floating dock was attached to shore.
In June I did a delivery of a Tartan 37 - good boat! I'm sorry yours is damaged. Viewers who wonder what's inside their rudders should have a look at the pic of the stern.
The finger pier did indeed have a piling at the end. See the roller on the end of the pier in the stern picture. The end of the finger pier has broken off. I have an idea why but can't say for sure at this time. The main dock also had a piling just inboard of my slip. So we should not have ended up here with pilings on the starboard bow and port quarter unless there was a massive load placed on the finger pier which is what I think happened.
The marina usually has security but that may not be the case now. However, the key to the outboard lock is inside the boat. So it will take more time for them to steal it. But like my dad used to say, "Locks just keep your friends honest." We are bringing a bunch of empty containers over so we can unload the boat if we get a chance.
The marina usually has security but that may not be the case now. However, the key to the outboard lock is inside the boat. So it will take more time for them to steal it. But like my dad used to say, "Locks just keep your friends honest." We are bringing a bunch of empty containers over so we can unload the boat if we get a chance.
WHEEE!!!!
As far as I can tell, the rudder is the major problem with the boat. Although I lost BOTH bow chocks and when the port chock went, the bow pulpit was damaged. I have a 9X9 patch of gelcoat missing above the waterline but the underlaying roving is undamaged as near as I can tell. No water inside the boat, even the bilge is dry. Prop shaft is straight and turns freely. The starboard bow line parted when the finger pier broke free.
But then again, I'm not an insurance adjuster and I haven't slept in a Holiday Inn Express in months.
As far as I can tell, the rudder is the major problem with the boat. Although I lost BOTH bow chocks and when the port chock went, the bow pulpit was damaged. I have a 9X9 patch of gelcoat missing above the waterline but the underlaying roving is undamaged as near as I can tell. No water inside the boat, even the bilge is dry. Prop shaft is straight and turns freely. The starboard bow line parted when the finger pier broke free.
But then again, I'm not an insurance adjuster and I haven't slept in a Holiday Inn Express in months.
Palafox Marina before Sally
Palafox Marina from ground on left side of Google photo.
This is NOT my marina. Damage in my marina is mostly tilted floating docks and only two boats sunk. Both are Mainship cruisers.
Palafox Marina from ground on left side of Google photo.
This is NOT my marina. Damage in my marina is mostly tilted floating docks and only two boats sunk. Both are Mainship cruisers.
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Wayne,
Sorry to see that your boat was damaged; however, hopefully damage is repairable in a short period of time. As you are no doubt aware, there are all sorts of possibilities when dealing with insurance. One thing for sure is that they ae responsible for picking it up and blocking it so that further inspection is possible. May have to hire a surveyor to inspect it and arrive at some sort of conclusion as to extent of damages, estimated costs of repair, etc. before deciding on what to do. After, Katrina, my previous boat was still afloat; however, it had so much damage that I requested that it be totaled and the insurance company obliged.
I had my boat berthed at a marina that had floating docks. Worked well with tropical storms and a minimal Cat 1 storm; however, Katrina was another story. We had at least 15' surge and winds of 130mph. Floating docks are not capable of withstanding those types of storms. The marina had maximum occupancy. The wave action combined with the wind force on all of those boats caused the concrete pilings to snap off or the attachments on the finger piers to break loose from the concrete piles, and a few finger piers overtopped the piles. Once that happened the docks & finger piers broke up. All those concrete dock segments and boats moving around in those kinds of conditions caused massive amounts of damage. Some boats were holed and sunk(30%) some were holed and remained afloat (30%) some had dock rash(20%), and surprisingly, some had no discernable damage (20%). Looks like the same thing happened at Palafox, even though it was a much weaker storm than Katrina.
By all means, keep a look out for looters...they are plentiful in the aftermath of a storm.
These photos clearly show where pilings, docks, & boats have vanished, as well as some piling remaining where the docks overtopped the piles or the finger piers broke loose from piles. Lots of carnage: Oak Harbor Marina, Slidell, (Katrina '05). The last two photos were my boat. Brings back bad memories looking at the situation at Palafox. Have some friends who operate a sailing school out of Palafox that will undoubtedly be affected for some time; hopefully their boats are OK. Unlike the real estate company that owned & operated Oak Harbor, I believe that the Marina company in Pensacola will be very motivated to rebuild/ repair as soon as possible.
Hope that Y'all get back to normal very quickly and best of luck with the boat.
Sorry to see that your boat was damaged; however, hopefully damage is repairable in a short period of time. As you are no doubt aware, there are all sorts of possibilities when dealing with insurance. One thing for sure is that they ae responsible for picking it up and blocking it so that further inspection is possible. May have to hire a surveyor to inspect it and arrive at some sort of conclusion as to extent of damages, estimated costs of repair, etc. before deciding on what to do. After, Katrina, my previous boat was still afloat; however, it had so much damage that I requested that it be totaled and the insurance company obliged.
I had my boat berthed at a marina that had floating docks. Worked well with tropical storms and a minimal Cat 1 storm; however, Katrina was another story. We had at least 15' surge and winds of 130mph. Floating docks are not capable of withstanding those types of storms. The marina had maximum occupancy. The wave action combined with the wind force on all of those boats caused the concrete pilings to snap off or the attachments on the finger piers to break loose from the concrete piles, and a few finger piers overtopped the piles. Once that happened the docks & finger piers broke up. All those concrete dock segments and boats moving around in those kinds of conditions caused massive amounts of damage. Some boats were holed and sunk(30%) some were holed and remained afloat (30%) some had dock rash(20%), and surprisingly, some had no discernable damage (20%). Looks like the same thing happened at Palafox, even though it was a much weaker storm than Katrina.
By all means, keep a look out for looters...they are plentiful in the aftermath of a storm.
These photos clearly show where pilings, docks, & boats have vanished, as well as some piling remaining where the docks overtopped the piles or the finger piers broke loose from piles. Lots of carnage: Oak Harbor Marina, Slidell, (Katrina '05). The last two photos were my boat. Brings back bad memories looking at the situation at Palafox. Have some friends who operate a sailing school out of Palafox that will undoubtedly be affected for some time; hopefully their boats are OK. Unlike the real estate company that owned & operated Oak Harbor, I believe that the Marina company in Pensacola will be very motivated to rebuild/ repair as soon as possible.
Hope that Y'all get back to normal very quickly and best of luck with the boat.
