www.skiboatdeaths.com

www.skiboatdeaths.com

Saw this being discussed over on wakeworld.com.

Tragic story....feel awful for the parents loss...but the the fact is the kid was doing two things that my future child will never do: 1)'teak surfing' and 2)not wearing a life jacket.

Now this guy has sued the boat manufacturer.

Interested to see what some of your opinions are.

First, I am truly heartbroken for the family and their loss.
Secondly, boating and skiing are great fun, but there are risks. Caution must be a priority. We never get in or out of the boat unless the engine is off. We never sit or stand on the ski platform unless the engine is off. We do not start the boat until the skier is safely away from the prop or the exhaust.
We nevery start the boat until the person in the water lets us know that they and the ski ropes are clear of the prop. It is always the drivers responsibility to make sure of these things before the boat is started.
Driving a boat lulls one into a false sense of security, all that open space, but skiers and other boats can and will do unpredictable things. A driver needs to constantly be aware.

But in that awareness--there is nothing that beats running a classic boat through the slalom course, or cruising the quiet waters at the day's end!

A terrible thing to happen. I can't imagine loosing a child for any reason. I am probably over cautious when boating. No one is on the platform or boarding or dragging right behind the boat with the boat running. The boat starts when the skier is well clear of the boat. I see people boarding boats all the time with the boat running. Luckly I haven't had to see what happens if the person slips getting in. A little more caution on all of our part can help to prevent some of the lawsuits with the manufactures getting blamed for things that should be the responsiblity of the us, the consumer.

No question a very tragic situation however it does appear to be preventable with a little common sense. I NEVER let anyone ski behind my boat without a floating device, be it a barefoot suit or PFD nor is my engine ever running while someone is on the swim platform. My current boat, 05' 206, was delivered with numerous CO warning stickers on it as well as CC includes pamphlets explaining CO warnings and hazards. With my previous boat which was a 99', CC mailed warning stickers and pamphlets a year or two after delivery, if you heed any of these warnings you most likely will never have a problem.
Of course I feel for their losses however sadly more often then not individuals do not take responsibility for their own negligence and instead find someone to sue.
I heard CC discontinued the hot/cold showers from the factory after 05' because of liability related to CO poisoning.

I can understand that his father would like to do something to help. What a terrible loss. Sure many things could have been done and I am sure that father has run them all through his head many times. For new boats there are many solutions. Stickers, converters and side exhusts were mentioned. All are good ideas, but what about the old ski boats that are out there. How about if placing a sticker in a few spots on the boat becomes a Coast Guard standard like having a throw ring and other safety gear are now. Say on the stern and the dash in front of the driver. I for one would be happy to buy a few stickers to possibly save a life.

on the website there is a link t*tled "what is CO". within that page it discusses the use of "water blatters". Anyone know what these are?

look at the pic at the top of the page. my kids have admitted to headaches from riding in the back seat. always disgarded it to sun, sea, rough rides, hunger and possibly CO. Now I'll always consider CO as the first cause.

I dont like lawsuits especially when consumer negligence is involved. But if the pic is accurate regarding CO at the stern under idle - then i'll have to agree thats its time to do something

oldskiboat wrote: All are good ideas, but what about the old ski boats that are out there. How about if placing a sticker in a few spots on the boat becomes a Coast Guard standard like having a throw ring and other safety gear are now. Say on the stern and the dash in front of the driver. I for one would be happy to buy a few stickers to possibly save a life.

That's like putting a sticker on the bow stating not to lean over while underway. Or how about a sticker on your dashboard to wear your seatbelt in the car. Come on, stickers don't save lives. Inboard ski boats have been around say ~50 years and it's not like the problem has escalated to people dropping like flies.

I agree it totally sucks for it to happen w/o knowing about the dangers of CO, but that's something you need to learn/know BEFORE boating.

77stang wrote: Fact is, if you cant set in a factory back seat with factory installed exhaust system without getting a CO headache there IS a problem.

That fact is certainly hard to define. I can and do sit back there w/o ever having a problem. A six year old *might* though and would be very hard to prove it's from the CO, not saying it can't be but there are many other factors involved.

If this were such a huge problem why aren't we hearing about it from everyone else who's sitting in the back seat?

That diagram of CO readings under "What is CO" makes no sence at all to me. How can you get 5300 on one side and 2800-4900 on the other. The reading in the middle of the platform closest to the boat is 7500-23,800. I would like to know alittle more about how these tests were perfromed and why the odd numbers.

CO is harmfull when you are sitting still with you boat running or while being within 2ft of the exhaust pipes.
If you turn your boat off while you are stopped and dont allow people to ride on the platform or teak surf. You should be fine.

If someone does get poisened there is a good chance that they are going to pass out before they die. If they do not have a life jacket on when they pass out they will sink. So even if someone gets poisened there is a good chance they will survive if they are in the boat or have a life jacket on.

you can put stickers all over your boat on things not to do but stupid people will still do stupid things. These settlements burn me like a cup of hot(McDonalds) coffee!

I just sent an email to the site. Having been an avid boater for over 40 years, as well as teaching boater safety, I recomended that he focus some of his efforts towards testimonials at boater safety courses so as that tragety may never happen again. We all must take some responsibility.   Matt

I agree. If you were pulling kids in a wagon behind your Yukon Denali and they were gassed by CO, would you be able to sue GM? This is ridiculous. I can't believe the judges even let these cases go to court. I also can't imagine that catilytic converter would have saved the kid more so than a little common sense.

Look guys, I agree that a sticker is not the save all solution, but if a person just wasn't thinking or truly did not know about CO, it may give them a thought to stop the dangerous activity. It is a cheap way to at least help people that care.

Im all for safety...Im not saying you shouldnt have any warning stickers..but where do you start and stop with them?
its because of lawsuites like these we have all the warning stickers on almost eveything we buy today (like the "HOT" on McDonalds coffee cups,gee hot coffee!?) .... ..
I would never let anyone teak surf for the simple fact your only a few feet away from a rotating prop..just common sense / safety...my point is ,its not a smart thing to do in the first place..I wouldnt have even thought about exhaust.....

im probably as torked about the lawsuit over what I consider an unfortunate accident..

Just to inform some of you that seem to think its all about teak surfing because it's NOT. Data provided by the USCG


Number of Recognized CO Poisonings by Category*

                Fatal        Non Fatal
Outside houseboats      23           53
Outside other boats     31           81
Inside houseboats      3           178
Inside other boats      33           112
Unknown boat type      11           11
Unknown
location of victim      
USCG data –             3           29
Unclassified             18           21

TOTAL – 607            122           485

*596 of these poisonings occurred in 1990 – 2004; 7 occurred in the 1980’s; and 4 have no specified date.

OK boys - let me have it!