From: "SV Perception / Phyl & Fred Denton" <denton@flash.net
To: The Crew
Subject: Crews Letter #2002 08 Collision!
Date: Fri, 14 Jun 2002 11:08:04 +0300

Good Morning Ladies and Gentlemen,

If your boat is well placed in a marina, securely fastened to the quay at the stern and anchored forward, you do not expect a problem. If the weather is mild with winds of 3 or 4 Beaufort, 10 -15 knots, and the marina is sheltered, you feel safe enough to go explore the island

Imagine our surprise when we drove back into the marina to see Symi I, a 247 ton, 39 meter, 127 foot, tripper boat loaded with people laying up against a whole row of boats. She was bow to bow with Perception.

Symi I takes tourist on a two hour trip around the city of Rhodes. The incident started when she set her anchor after her morning sight seeing trip. Where she put her anchor was on top of the anchor of Breakers II

Breakers II was the boat to Perception's starboard. Symi I backed into her berth on the far side of the harbor and no one knew that the incident had started

At 1400, Symi I took on a full load of tourists, cast off her lines and started to retrieve her anchor. Up came Breakers II's anchor tangled in Symi I's. While the deck crew sorted out the mess, the wind turned her broadside and pushed her down on a floating restaurant and the marina boats. After the initial collision with the restaurant and some of the shorter boats at that end of the marina, she drove forward to smash into Perception and get her stern off the floating food palace

When we arrived, her bow was pressed up against the Genoa furled on the forestay. The bow pulpit was rearranged, the stern had been pushed into the quay and the starboard fenders were in near explode mode. It was not a happy sight. Carol took charge of the stern and kept it off the quay. Phyl and I went forward and fended Symi I off the bow. An officer from the Port Authority was there shoulder to shoulder with us. The Symi I crew ran two lines to the windward shore and pulled her off.

The damage was not so bad and there was no argument of responsibility

Symi I's company said they would arrange the repairs and pay for them

From the Greek perspective, they got this done fairly quickly. It only took 8 days. And it's not quite finished

Perception is now in Turkey. Phyl and I have seen more of Rhodes than a life time supply. It is easy to understand why the Colossus got bored and fell over.

I send along two pictures that pretty much tell the tale

Keep a Tight Luff,

Fred

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