Just wondering.

[REW]

I wonder what you would do as a prepared boater in the following situation:

Lets say that you were 20 miles off the nearest shore.
A storm has come up and you have received a direct lightning strike, which has taken out all of your electronics and motors.
i.e. you have no cell phone, no gps, no trolling motor battery, no main battery, no kicker motor, no depth finder, no two way or marine band radio.

Now, the storm is building and it is going to blow you further off shore.
The sun has set 4 hours before the lightning strike.
Also, the lightning bolt has medically affected two of the 4 folks on the boat.
What would you do?

REW

[Superfishman186]

Well the lightening would have fried 2 of my electric downriggers but I have two manual ones, I would drop em down about 15' off the bottom and pray the wind will get me up to the 2.8 mph that the kings have been hitting on. Other than that It seems like someone has been watching doomsday preparers to much.

[Behr]

Originally Posted by Superfishman186

Well the lightening would have fried 2 of my electric downriggers but I have two manual ones, I would drop em down about 15' off the bottom and pray the wind will get me up to the 2.8 mph that the kings have been hitting on. Other than that It seems like someone has been watching doomsday preparers to much.

Winner!

I would look at it like a great opportunity to lose that pesky 15 extra pounds... after that was accomplished, I'd activate the undamaged EPIRB I had stored in an insulated ceramic container.

[Munshaw]

Not much you can do. Don lifejackets if not wearing it already. I carry a first aid kit. I'd throw the sea anchor off the boe to keep the boat pointed into the wind. Depending on the direction of the wind and how far the opposite shore is, I'd throw an anchor if it was shallow enough. Then I'd ready my manual bailing device. Then I'd probably wet a line!
Oh yeah and I'd try my battery operated flash light to signal someone if possible.

[Jimmy Jig]

Start praying and thow out the anchor with all the rope I had on board!

[LLewellin]

I would hop in my smaller dingy boat that was being pulled 500' behind, start up the motor and pull the main boat and occupants back to shore. While doing the pulling, I'd pull out my satellite phone that was stored in the dingy and call for an EMT helicopter to meet us at shore for the occupants that were medically effected. I would also transfer warm blankets/food/beverages stored in the dingy to the other boat and also call the local liquor store to have some BomBay and tonic with limes delivered to the evact point!

[MarkG]

As a "prepared" boater,I hope I would have been smart enough, and aware of conditions enough, to have not gotten into that situation to begin with ! With all the info available to us...weather radios, radar aps on our smart phones,etc etc,,NO excuse for it other than stupid !

Otherwise,.... first life jackets. If the wind was not taking me in a favored direction,would throw out the anchor. Then signal flares. Quite honestly,would likely not be able to do much for the medical situations,except try to keep them comfortable.

[hommer23]

I would call Jimmy Johns and get a sub for the ride back with him. Also would fire a few flares off on the way back.

[Superfishman186]

Originally Posted by hommer23

I would call Jimmy Johns and get a sub for the ride back with him. Also would fire a few flares off on the way back.