Abby is ok

[venchka]

Abby Sunderland is ok. Her mast is down.

Cap'n Tom said, "HUH?"

Abby

[studiocygnet]

Quite an undertaking. I like this quote; "The wind had subsided to around 35 knots which she and Wild Eyes are quite comfortable with." Subsided to 35 knots - I'd be having a heart attack.

[L Stegall]

I am very glad she was found alive and well, because that was not the outcome I expected. I am curious who pays for the search efforts. I really had not followed her story until now.

[David_3]

Originally Posted by L Stegall

I am curious who pays for the search efforts.

Hard to say for sure, at this point. It will probably be funded by a few different sources. The Australian Maritime Authority chartered a Quantas A330 to do the air search (4700 mile round trip), and said it would not seek compensation. It wouldn't surprise me if her parents (or sponsors) got a bill for at least part of it, though.

She is not out the the woods, yet, as her boat is seriously damaged, and that part of the ocean can be brutal this time of the year. But things are certainly looking up.

[venchka]

I find headlines with the words "Lost" and "Missing" edit: misinformed. She knew exactly where she was. The global SAR folks knew exactly where the two EPIRBS were. Thank goodness she was in sight of the two manual EPIRBS. Had the third EPIRB (the automatic one that deploys at -15' MSL) been activated, then the story would have been very different.
The other interesting thing is that the standing rigging didn't fail until after several knockdowns in 60+ knots of wind and huge seas. Speculation: Fatigue in the hardware. Rogue wave. Hopefully Abby will explain everything soon.
Apparently her satellite phone antenna was lost when the rig failed. Probably mounted on the mast somewhere. At least one radio was working. Perhaps a low powered, line of sight VHF. No mention of SSB. Although that antenna could have gone down with the sat. phone antenna. High tech gizmos are very prone to sudden failure.

Very good news for sure.

[janikphoto]

Originally Posted by venchka

I find headlines with the words "Lost" and "Missing" ironic and uninformed.

Uninformed, yes. Ironic? Not sure where you are seeing the irony. Maybe it's a misuse of the word? Either way, I'm just glad the girl is alright...

[venchka]

Probably right. My fingers get ahead of my brain. Scratch "ironic".

[brewercm]

Glad to hear last night that she was doing good. I just find it hard as a parent to understand somebody allowing this with their underage child. Just me but way to many wack jobs on the seas as well as land for me to approve.

Also kind of brings up another thought as to child endangerment and at what point would this kick in. Had something happened to her (God forbid) would they have faced charges, but since she is fine they just get to eat up the free press. I guess I just don't get some people.

[venchka]

Once upon a time at 16...........

She would have been married.
She would have had a child or two.
She would have been working from sunup to past sundown cooking, cleaning, farming, swing, tending the kids.
She may not have seen nor spoken to her parents since the wedding.

While I was saying "Coulda, shoulda, woulda" since I was here age, she went and did it.

[venchka]

This is a photo forum........

Wild Eyes, minus a few essential parts, in a very big ocean.

[studiocygnet]

Originally Posted by venchka

Wild Eyes, minus a few essential parts, in a very big ocean.

Yep, that photo makes that 40' yacht look like a rowboat.

[brewercm]

I'm just saying that had this not turned out like it had I'd almost guarantee there would be talk of prosecution of the parents.

Once upon a time...
Life expectancy was around 50
Small Pox ran wild
Slavery was legal
Women weren't allowed to vote

Just doesn't mean it's right.

[venchka]

Clifton,
I hear you. Folks in California raised the child abuse flag when the plan was first hatched.
I dunno. Somedays I wish I had run away from home when I had the chance.
I am glad she is ok. For all of it's faults, Wild Eyes stayed together. I pray Abby is safe until rescue arrives.

[brewercm]

Same here. Sounds like they are attempting to keep a close eye on her until the rescue ship gets there. I'm sure if anything happens begore they can always get a rescue chopper there if need be.

[David_3]

Not likely to get a helicopter there, as she is well over 1000 miles from the nearest land, and 2000 miles from civilization. Most helicopters don't have a range of more than 200-400 miles. I think a Blackhawk with external tanks can get close to 1000 miles, though. So a rescue ship with a helicopter on board would typically have to be within 75-150 miles to launch an airborne rescue.