Medway Barge Match, Sat 28 May

Medway Barge MatchThe spectacular annual barge match will start at Gillingham on Saturday morning, probably quite early as HW is at 0530. The barges race out to the Medway Approach Buoy and back up the river.

The June 2016 issue of Yachting Monthly featured an article on the Medway Barge Match by Nick Ardley.

Visit Medway Barge Match website.

Yachtsman rescued from water in Halstow Creek

The Sheerness Lifeboat team reports that a man clinging for his life to a buoy for two hours in the dark in the Medway Estuary was rescued by a Good Samaritan and Sheerness RNLI lifeboat volunteers. The 64 year old man had transferred from his yacht moored in Halstow Creek to a dinghy which then capsized, leaving him in the perilously cold water alone at night. Eventually the man’s cries for help were heard by someone in a nearby house sparking an emergency 999 call to the Coastguard and a late night launch of Sheerness RNLI’s inshore lifeboat Eleanor at 12.05am on Thursday 19 May.

Within less than half an hour of leaving their beds, the charity’s volunteer crew reached the area at 12.27pm and immediately launched two flares to illuminate the dark night and assist their search. RNLI helmsman Mark Tucker said: ‘We spotted a man in a small rhib type boat next to a mooring buoy who we later learned had been alerted by a phone call saying that cries for help could be heard in the creek.The chap got into his boat and eventually located the casualty in the water where he was clinging to the buoy. Having found the man in the water the Good Samaritan hadn’t been able to get him out and so hung onto him until we arrived on the scene.’

As the lifeboat neared the scene crew member Kris White jumped into the water to support the casualty before getting him aboard the lifeboat with the support of his fellow RNLI crew members. Kris added: ‘It was a pitch black night and the water was extremely cold. The guy was in a bad way. He was so cold he looked blue. We think he had been in the water for two hours. He was lucky he’d been spotted and help came. I don’t know how much longer he could have held on if he’d been alone but the fact that he was wearing his lifejacket undoubtedly saved his life because apart from the extreme cold there was a very strong tide running which would have been impossible to swim against.’

‘This incident goes to show how quickly and unexpectedly things can go wrong, even in a sheltered creek. We’d urge everyone to carry a waterproof means of communication, whether that’s a radio, a mobile phone in a protective pouch or even flares, so that if they find themselves in a similar situation they can call for help.’

The casualty was taken to a nearby slipway where he was handed over to a waiting South East Coast Ambulance Service crew. It is not thought the man’s condition was life threatening.

The ILB crew had earlier been called at 5.55pm on Wednesday 18 May to assist in the recovery of a body found in the water at Strood Pier.

Follow the RNLI Sheerness Lifeboat’s activities on Facebook.

Push the Boat Out on the Medway, 20-22 May

PTBOTry sailing at Medway Yacht Club’s open weekend from Friday 20 May to Sunday 22 May.

Wilsonian Sailing Club has an open day for you to try dinghy sailing on Saturday 21 May.

Medway Watersports Centre is offering dinghy sailing tasters at The Strand, Gillingham, in Wayfarers and Leaders on Saturday 21 May and Sunday 22 May.

Rochester Old Stone Bridge Inspection and Span Closures

Structural inspection works and span closures will commence on Rochester Old Stone Bridge from 17-23 May 2016. A rope access team will operate on the underside of the Rochester Old Stone Bridge. Only one span will be closed to navigation at any one time.

A closed span will be identified by the suspension of three RED discs at the points of an equilateral triangle with the apex downwards and the base horizontal; by night by three RED lights in a similar position to the discs exhibited by day. The RED discs or lights will be suspended from the centre of the span.

The safety boat ‘Protector’ will be in attendance and will maintain a listening watch on VHF Ch74.

VIC 96 steams to Ostend

VIC96VIC 96, a WW2 Admiralty “puffer” was seen today under steam leaving Stangate Creek for Ramsgate, en route for the Ostend At Anchor classic boat event before going to Vlissingen. This year’s  trip will commemorate the voyage of the Defiance in May 1816, by Captain William Wager, who steamed from Margate to the Netherlands with the aim of introducing steam ships to Holland and Germany.

Flare Amnesty at Dover Marina, 21 May

Dover Marina as part of its open day on Saturday 21 May have arranged a “Flare Amnesty.” Private individuals can take flares along to Dover Marina between 10am and 1.30pm (not as previously stated) and dispose of them free of charge. Entry to the open day, which runs from 10am to 4pm. For further information please read the attached flyer: Dover Marina Open Day 2016

Have you seen my dinghy? YES!

Ken Marsden writes, “I’m a member of the Medway Cruising Club, and within the last few days have lost my dinghy from my mooring off Gillingham.  As far as I can see the dinghy became detached and floated away, rather than being stolen. The 8ft dinghy is fibreglass, painted cream outside and grey inside, bears in big letters the name PICARO and also has on the stern MCC. Would you be able to circulate your contacts on the river to see if it has been found?”

If you have any information, please call Ken on 07885 595393.

UPDATE: As a result of this website publishing this appeal, Ken has foudn out that his dinghy was recovered by the Sheerness lifeboat.