WrightAvia
Well-known member
- Joined
- Jul 15, 2002
- Posts
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Boating season is upon us and I just came across these interesting news articles on a new FAD called TEAK SURFING. Did a search on it and found several fatalities in the news related to this fad. I know it's not aviation related but with boating as popular as it is and now in season, I thought I'd post it. Also be quick to note that Stacey's parents have have blamed the manufacturers of the boats for making dangerous products that emit Carbon Monoxide!
The Silent Killer (courtesy of ABC News)
A new fad called "teak surfing," in which swimmers hang on to a swim platform (often made of teak) to be dragged behind a motorboat, is being blamed for many of the latest deaths.
http://dep.state.ct.us/rec/boating/images/teaksurfing.jpg
Stacey Beckett, 15, from Ontario, Calif., died while "teak-surfing" in Mexico behind a friend's Master Craft ski boat. What Beckett didn't realize is that she was putting her face right in a stream of carbon monoxide gas from the boat's engine.
"She ultimately was overcome by the fumes, let go and drowned in the water, although her carbon monoxide levels alone were sufficient to be fatal," said family attorney Jim Tierney.
Beckett's case sparked a lawsuit filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court this week against 11 ski-boat manufacturers.
They allege that the companies need to do more to warn boaters about the danger, and need to work on technical fixes to reduce CO emissions.
"You don't know where the carbon monoxide is accumulating and where it's going, and that's the danger," said Steve Beckett, Stacey's father.
Government tests have shown the fumes can accumulate right around the engine and generator exhaust vents. Concentrations have been measured as high as 30,000 parts per million. NIOSH considers 1,200 parts per million as posing an immediate danger.
"The concentrations that are occurring at the back end of the boats are so high that it sometimes takes just a few breaths to render someone unconscious," said Baron.
People have been poisoned swimming under the rear platforms of houseboats, playing in the water near generator exhaust vents of cabin cruisers, even sitting on the swim platforms of ski boats while the engine was running.
"I think the boating manufacturers need to step up and they need to warn everybody that buys a boat, and there should be stickers all over the boat, especially around the swim steps, that death may occur if you're around the boat when it's running," said Sherry Beckett, Stacey's mother.
The Silent Killer (courtesy of ABC News)
A new fad called "teak surfing," in which swimmers hang on to a swim platform (often made of teak) to be dragged behind a motorboat, is being blamed for many of the latest deaths.
http://dep.state.ct.us/rec/boating/images/teaksurfing.jpg
Stacey Beckett, 15, from Ontario, Calif., died while "teak-surfing" in Mexico behind a friend's Master Craft ski boat. What Beckett didn't realize is that she was putting her face right in a stream of carbon monoxide gas from the boat's engine.
"She ultimately was overcome by the fumes, let go and drowned in the water, although her carbon monoxide levels alone were sufficient to be fatal," said family attorney Jim Tierney.
Beckett's case sparked a lawsuit filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court this week against 11 ski-boat manufacturers.
They allege that the companies need to do more to warn boaters about the danger, and need to work on technical fixes to reduce CO emissions.
"You don't know where the carbon monoxide is accumulating and where it's going, and that's the danger," said Steve Beckett, Stacey's father.
Government tests have shown the fumes can accumulate right around the engine and generator exhaust vents. Concentrations have been measured as high as 30,000 parts per million. NIOSH considers 1,200 parts per million as posing an immediate danger.
"The concentrations that are occurring at the back end of the boats are so high that it sometimes takes just a few breaths to render someone unconscious," said Baron.
People have been poisoned swimming under the rear platforms of houseboats, playing in the water near generator exhaust vents of cabin cruisers, even sitting on the swim platforms of ski boats while the engine was running.
"I think the boating manufacturers need to step up and they need to warn everybody that buys a boat, and there should be stickers all over the boat, especially around the swim steps, that death may occur if you're around the boat when it's running," said Sherry Beckett, Stacey's mother.
