A TEACHABLE TRAGEDY
[A Case Study Based on the Recent Drowning Accident of a Disabled Veteran While Fly Fishing]
A terrible, tragic accident occurred on Sunday, and one of our brothers in arms and of the fly lost his life. Our thoughts are with his friends, family, and those fellow anglers who were with him at the time. This is a horrible time for all of them. And no one should interpret anything found in this communication as an assignment of blame. That is not appropriate or the intent of my message. And in an effort to avoid all such traps, I will leave out as many identifying details as possible without damaging the important facts from which we all need to learn. If any one of us thinks that this sort of thing could never happen to us, then we need to get real with ourselves. We all are tempted to get sloppy, careless, and take a shortcut now and then. We all make the occasional assumption that "the other guy" took care of something when they actually didn't. Usually, that assumption isn't fatal. But it can be at any time! Sunday it was for one of our own. All of us make mistakes. All of us make a few horrible ones. The goal is to learn from them and get better. And that is the purpose of this note.
I spoke to one of the individuals who was in the boat and he told me that his hope is that others learn from this. The dead man was a participant in the adaptive fly fishing program that he leads, but they had become close friends over the course of the past year. He said that policy changes have already begun to be made at several places where he has spoken to people about what happened. So this article is in keeping with his wishes, and the following account is an accurate restatement of what he conveyed to me.
A volunteer leader with a well-known, all-volunteer adaptive fly fishing charity took a couple disabled veterans on a spur of the moment “buddy” fishing trip Sunday on a river using a small boat with an outboard motor. (By “buddy” trip I mean that it was in no way affiliated with or sponsored by the non-profit adaptive fly fishing organization. The three guys were watching TV and decided to go fishing the next day) This fellow had recently completed a well-respected fly fishing guide school in the northwestern US due to his affiliation with the non-profit org. This volunteer leader has been in his position for almost 3 years, fly fishing for over 4 years, and came out of the military medical community before becoming disabled during Operation Iraqi Freedom. He is well beyond his 29th birthday, has a wife, children, and works a civilian job for the government.
Upon entering the boat, the leader noticed there were no oars, paddles or other secondary means of propulsion or steering and an insufficient number of PFD's. But they wanted to go fishing. So they went anyway. In an unfamiliar boat, on a relatively unfamiliar river, they became entangled in a tree and disabled the engine. They got the boat to shore several miles from their vehicle and any sign of civilization. So they began hiking up the bank back toward assistance. For some reason I did not understand, they decided they needed to swim the river at a point where the banks were steep and the current was swift. That's when one member of the party became exhausted in mid-stream, cried out for help, and disappeared before any of the others (also exhausted) could get to him. None were wearing PFD's. He did not mention that he was a non-swimmer until they were already being carried away by the current. The rest of the party found a cabin and called for help. Searchers found his body Monday morning.
What went wrong?
1. They didn't know he couldn't swim well.
2. There was secondary means of propulsion or maneuvering the boat.
3. There was an insufficient number and/or type of PFD's on the boat.
4. They made a very poor choice of locations to try and cross the river.
5. They were not prepared, either by training or equipment to cross a river.
How do we avoid these mistakes?
1. NEVER take anyone out on the water without specifically asking them whether or not they are a strong swimmer, if not giving them a swim test first! Those are the key words: "Are you a strong swimmer?" This will get you an accurate answer as to their relative ability level, experience, and current conditioning. Familiarity breeds contempt. Don't get lazy with your friends, relatives, etc.!
2. If a boat does not have at least two means of propulsion/maneuver, it does not leave the launch!
3. If a boat does not have the right number and type of PFD's on board, it does not leave the launch! 2 and 3 require you to do quite a bit of advanced preparation, especially if borrowing or renting boats in remote areas. You don't want to drive several hours into nowhere only to discover you cannot launch the boat because you are short a lifejacket and the closest place to buy one is 100 miles away. Regarding the type of PFD’s appropriate to use, everyone always says the standard “safe” thing – “U.S. Coast Guard approved.” But the U.S. Coast Guard doesn’t approve inflatable PFD’s of the suspender or belt variety that blow up using a CO2 cartridge. And the main reason why so few anglers and hunters wear PFD’s when on the water is that they are impractical to wear while hunting and fishing due to the way their bulk restricts movement, and the way their design increases the risk of heat-related injuries and limits access to gear pockets and such. However, it is interesting to note that while the U.S. Coast Guard does not approve inflatable personal floatation devices or boats, they use both themselves. And every piece of internal U.S. Coast Guard safety literature stresses the importance of keeping their own personnel safe as their first priority. I have never been a believer in “do as I say and not as I do.” If inflatable PFD’s are good enough for U.S. Coast Guard personnel operating in the ocean, then they are good enough for me! Now I know some readers are thinking, “But I can buy a life jacket for ten dollars and those suspenders are about a hundred bucks.” That is basically true. I won’t argue the point that the CO2 suspender or belt PFD’s are substantially more expensive than a cheap orange life vest from the sporting goods department at the discount store. The odd thing about safety equipment is that no matter what it costs it is a complete waste of money until you need it. And there are a couple of other things that are true about safety and emergency equipment. First, sooner or later almost everyone will need it! Second, that one time in your life when you, a loved one, a friend, or a client needs it, you will absolutely without a doubt wish you had spent whatever you had to spend for the very best safety and emergency gear money can buy. You can take that to the bank! The guys who were in the boat on Sunday with the veteran who drowned have already – without even speaking to me – gone out and bought top of the line inflatable suspender PFD’s for as many people as they ever have gone fishing with at one time. What is a life worth to you? These PFD’s of the belt or suspender variety are nearly weightless and are totally out of the way when fishing, hunting, and boating. In my experience and that of several guides who wear them, we often forget that we have them on and find ourselves getting in the truck or walking into a convenience store or restaurant with one on after fishing. That is no exaggeration. So my recommendation may vary from the industry standard just a bit. Get the belt or suspender style CO2 charging auto-inflating PFD’s and wear them when in any sort of boat. Make anyone who goes with you do the same. There simply is no excuse not to wear this type of PFD.
4. Poor swimmers ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS wear a PFD. No exceptions. Same for anyone with a mobility impairment, seizure disorder, etc. Of course, in this situation they didn't know he was a weak swimmer...mistakes compounding themselves are almost always what lead to tragedy. High, steep banks and swift current is an automatic "do not cross" sign unless you have nothing but strong swimmers who are experienced in swift-water rescue operations and/or safe river crossings. Even professional rescue swimmers die every now and then in such conditions. It is usually what you don't know that will hurt or kill you If you are a guide, instructor, or volunteer with a fly fishing program, study your craft! Take what you do seriously. I don't care if it gets dark, you are lost, you're tired and hungry, or if you're bleeding out of your ears; you keep moving up or down stream (pick one and stick with it) until you find a safe (meaning easy) place to cross. If it takes 2-3 days to locate a safe crossing, oh well! At least you lived through it.
5. If you recreate or work in/on rivers, you better know how to cross them safely and what equipment is needed and useful. A bunch of 30-50 year old disabled veterans don't just say, "Hey, I'm kind of hungry. Let's just swim over there to that Burger King on the other side of the river." That is for high school and college boys who aren't wise enough to know any better and haven't been around long enough to have used up any energy yet. Some of them die that way, too. We must know our limitations, operate safely inside those boundaries, and make sure we never push anyone else outside their comfort zone.
But the biggest point of this whole message is to keep the main thing the main thing, folks. Never allow yourselves to forget why we are doing what we are doing. We are out there to have fun and to help others improve their own lives through recreation the same we have improved ours. To put it frankly, that can't happen if you're dead. Take safety seriously! Never compromise.
And remember: it's just fishin'! No fish is worth dying for. I hope I never have to write another article like this.
By Ken Morrow, Certified Angler Education Instructor, Certified Adaptive Fly Fishing Practitioner