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 Previous Item - A Nice November Day
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A normal day gone very very bad |
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Bruce Bennett - Jun 13,2004
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Sunday is our normal fly to breakfast day. This morning was a very hot, but beautiful day to fly to breakfast. Bruce put off doing the annual on the plane until sometime this week. So off we went to Titusville for breakfast.<br /><br />We had a very good breakfast and even talked to some friends we haven't seen in a long time. The morning was waiting for us to do our usual splash-ins on the lakes and do our alligator checks.<br /><br />We were flying over Lake Winder and we saw 10 alligators all in a row on an island. We decided to splash-in so I could get some alligator pictures.<br /><br />We splashed on the lake and I got my camera ready to take some pictures when all of a sudden Bruce said we were taking on water. I looked at him and he was alarmed. He immediately looked around to see if there were any other boats........none. Bruce said that we were sinking!!!<br /><br />I took my cell phone out of the zip lock bag and called 911. A woman answered and I told her we were in a seaplane and we just landed on a lake and we were taking on water....fast! I told her we were on Lake Winder and could we get a helicopter, fisherman or airboater to help us. She said she would get help immediately. She wanted me to stay on the line until help arrived, I said I would.<br /><br />Bruce took out the paddle, we opened both canopys. I did not want to leave the security of our SeaRey, but our SeaRey was sinking and we had to get out. We got out of the plane and inflated our Sospender life vests. They were keeping us afloat just like they are supposed to. All we could do was watch our beautiful SeaRey sink right before our eyes, it went down in only minutes!!<br /><br />As we were huddled together lo and behold an alligator was swimming toward us. Now I know why Bruce took the paddle with him. He heard stories of people hitting alligators on the head if they get close to you. Sure enough Bruce hit him on the head a couple of times and he turned and swam away. Thank God for the paddle!!<br /><br />Fortunately the water was very smooth and I had the cell phone protected by the zip lock. The 911 person asked how we were doing. I told her considering that we lost our beautiful SeaRey and lifeline, and we were in scary and forbidden water with alligators, we were doing ok. She said that a helicopter from Merritt Island Airport will be coming by very soon. I told her that's great, thank you. <br /><br />Within 20 minutes, which seemed like hours, we heard the roaring sound of the helicopter, they had a megaphone and said that an airboater was coming to pick us up and were we ok until then. We nodded our heads yes and we waited for the airboater. The helicopter stayed in the area, not not too close to us, but close enough.<br /><br />The airboater arrived and we were never so happy to get out of that scary forbidden water, but very sad that our SeaRey went down. We thanked the airboater with such exuberance, and gave the thumbs up to the helicopter pilot. I thanked the 911 person, and said we would like to meet her sometime to thank her personally. She said that would be nice. I believe she earned her pay this day. Three things saved our lives today, the life vests, the cell phone, and the paddle.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Now that I have your attention I will say that this was all a story. Bruce is actually doing his annual today and I was helping him put the prop back on. I said to him one of my nightmares is splashing down on a lake and the plane sinking, with alligators nearby. He said why don't you write a story about that. I said it isn't true, and he said Dan Nickens and others have made up stories and you don't know if they are true or not. As soon as I was done helping Bruce with the prop, I came home and wrote this story. When I read about the SeaRey that went down in a lake in Las Vegas in just minutes, that real story stuck with me, and I wondered what would we do if it happened to us; but with alligators nearby. I thought this would be a good story especially during the summer doldrums. By the way, Bruce did find some cracks in one of the rubber boots, now we have new ones.<br /><br /> Judy Bennett
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John Robert Dunlop - Jun 13,2004
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Thank you Judy! I almost had a heart attack!!
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Kenneth Leonard - Jun 13,2004
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Judy, Your story certainly got me thinking too. (Which my lovely wife will tell you is difficult to do.) Thank you.<br /> Has anyone tried holding a cell phone out of the water while they listen to it? I wonder if you could keep it dry. Would the signal work at water level?<br />If there was gas leaking from a sunk seaplane, I would think flares might scare the gators very well! Might take your mind off them too. <br />Presuming they were undamaged, wouldn't the wings provide floatation for the rest of the plane for at least a while?
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Dan Nickens - Jun 13,2004
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It was a dark and stormy night. Lightning cracked across the foreboding sky as I eased back into my chair and opened up my favorite web site. My eyes were quickly drawn to tidings of a friend's normal day gone very, very bad. I raced through the words with pounding heart, cursing the Colonel. That perfidious scoundrel had called me with his version of the tall tale just a few hours earlier! It was a most excellent story, Judy, even if some dastardly fiend called in the ending. Probably saved me from having a bad dream tonight.
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Walt Bates - Jun 14,2004
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You got me too, Judy! Whew! Seriously, I think the only weakness in your story is the part about the gators. In my experience alligators will do everything possible to get away from you - or maybe it's just me they don't like.<br />Secondly, having watched a Buc II sink, I believe a Searey's wings, if intact, would float it for quite a while.
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Terry Mac Neill - Jun 14,2004
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Judy,<br /><br />You had me HOOKED !!! You said a ' bad ' day not a ' Sad ' day, so I kept on reading. I have often thought about when I get my plane flying and come to Florida during the winters, to fly with Searey people, what am I going to do about the alligators.... I hate and fear them !!!<br /><br />Your story may prepare and save lives in the future.<br /><br />GOOD JOB, WELL DONE<br /><br /> Terry M.<br /><br />P.S. Watch out Dan, we have another superb writer in the ranks.
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Charlie Huskey - Jun 14,2004
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Hmmmmmmmm, I just had a brain poot. Hydroplane racers have an inflatable cell they use to keep their boat from sinking into deep water when they flip their boats. Don`t know what the cylinder of compressed air and cell would weigh, BUT might be worth looking into. JUST A THOUGHT, er a B P.
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Chris Vernon-Jarvis - Jun 14,2004
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I may have mentioned this before:<br /><br />It takes 15lbs of polystyrene (The white type) to keep a searey afloat. Its advantage over ping pong balls is that it can be glued in, (Use silicone caulking, not resin.)
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Terry Mac Neill - Jun 14,2004
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Judy,<br /><br />This whole thing got me thinking .... unknown water inside the plane. Instead of a panel operated bilge pump, why not a float operated bilge pump with a red light on panel indicating that bilge pump is running .......<br />'voile' hit the throttle and lets get the Hell otta thisa watta and backa toda dry land.<br /><br />This might keep a Searey from sinking thats moored for days at a time also, just like boats. No Magic.<br /><br /> comments please<br /><br /> Terry
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Charlie Huskey - Jun 14,2004
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Beat you too it Terry, I had a float pump left over from boat building days and installed it in SeaRey
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Joe Friend - Jun 15,2004
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Holy Cow, Judy. You sure had my adrenalin pumping. I'm glad this story was fiction only. When I repaired my SeaRey a few years ago after a sinking in only 5 ft. of water, I installed three boat bumpres for floatation, two under the fuel tank and one in the nose. I hate that sinking feeling.<br /><br />Joe Friend
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Chris Vernon-Jarvis - Jun 15,2004
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My pump has both manual and float operation. Manual through normal bus-bar, breaker and switch. Float operation by a seperate breaker, switch and the float switch. This breaker is wired directly to the battery. Just turn it on if leaving plane in water overnight.<br /><br />Total cost of this mod was about $12.00
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Chet Tims - Jun 17,2004
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Mine too ! I was wondering if someone thought this might be a bit of overkill. Wired directly to the battery for the 'standby' mode. Overhead switch - off in the middle - 'On' when pulled backward (like the other switches) and 'standby' when in the forward position.<br />In that mode, the pump comes on when the float goes up.<br />NOW.....Judy, you owe me $ 100 bucks !!!! I ruined a pair of shorts....stopped in the middle of the story and drove to 'Boater's World' and bought an inflatable vest and cellphone cover !!!!
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Bruce Bennett - Jun 17,2004
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Chet, I figure if the inflatable vest and cellphone cover helps to save your life someday, you'll owe me the $100!!!<br /><br /> JB
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