Laurent is happy with his business. Owner of an old car he no longer used. He offered a trade-in to an owner of a Moody 30. And he accepted. So he went to Royan in September 2017 to pick up his new boat (an opportunity dating back to 1977). On this navigation, he aims to bring it back to Rouen, in Normandy.
Notice of Large Charges
Arriving in Fromentine, south of Noirmoutier, a notice of Grand Frais is announced. Prudent, Laurent anchors for the night and prefers to wait until the next morning, when the winds have calmed down, to continue on his way. He took advantage of his evening at anchor to prepare his route for the next morning on the Navivonics software installed on his phone. He calls CROSS the next day to take the weather forecast and make sure everything was clear. Confirmation from the military, the weather will be better. The operator even makes sure with Laurent that he has studied his route, which he confirms. Laurent's interlocutor asks him for his MMSI to be able to follow him all the way up the Island and make sure that everything is going as well as possible.
Route planned and studied
The skipper sets off and launches navigation software on his phone. Like many, he has several navigation solutions, in this case Navionics and Sailgrib. It is by pressing this Sailgrib icon that the accident that Laurent's boat will suffer will take its root.
The skipper is heading North-East of the Ile de Noirmoutier on board of Dream of a Life ...his Moody 30, guided by this other software. He is surprised not to find his route traced the day before. It is therefore in a hurry and tired from a night he spent shaking in his boat that Laurent quickly retraces his route and makes his way, not having studied the proposed route or properly configured the display of his software.
Bottoming with loss of rudder
It happened in the northwest of the island, which he's now following for the first time. Quick reaction, engine running, he swings back and clears. Bad luck again. A current pushes the Moody 30 back even harder. This time the boat is close to the rudder. With the rudder broken, Laurent fell and hit the tiller of his boat, which he broke in his fall.
The owner then finds himself in a very delicate situation. He manages to get up, a little shaken by the fall. He manoeuvres with the engine. He sends the genoa and manages, with some difficulty, to reach an anchorage. About 300 metres from the anchorage is a boat in fishing action. Laurent does everything he can to call for help, from the VHF to the whistle blows, through the signal mirror, but without any response from the fisherman.
Call to CROSS
He switches his VHF to channel 16 and throws a "Pan Pan!" CROSS quickly takes over the alert. Explanation of the situation, the only possible solution would be a tow. CROSS consequently dispatches an SNSM patrol boat to the area.
An hour later, the speedboat arrives. A rescue crewmember boards Dream of a Life to arrange the trailer. Everything goes well, the boat is towed to the Herbaudière. Once there, the skipper of the speedboat comes to meet the yachtsman and tries to find out how to help him. It was clear that the boat had to be taken out of the water to determine the extent of the damage and what to do. The volunteer is a local, he uses his contacts to help Laurent and less than an hour later his Moody is out of the water.
Extensive damage to the boat
The damage is substantial. The rudder stock is bent, the tiller is broken, a few chips in the gel-coat... alterations which, for the most part, prevent the sailor from going back to sea, all the more so as he reaches Rouen via the tip of Brittany. Repairs will therefore be carried out in Noirmoutier.
SNSM Towing Payment
The first surprise for Laurent, comes when the skipper of the launch asks him on the spot, the payment of the towing service. This will be the first lesson for him. Saving lives is a free act for the people saved. Saving property (towing in this case) is paid for. The bill for this towing service amounts to 1,200 euros. He explains to the skipper that he does not have this sum on him and offers to pay it through his insurance. The rescuer does not seem inclined to use this method, but it remains the only one possible. Laurent will quickly make a declaration to his insurance company, which will pay the cost of the operation to the association directly.
The rest with his insurance will be just as complicated: quarrels between experts and care, refusal of care, forfeiture of values. It's a little administrative nightmare that Laurent will live through after this accident.
Error in launching the software
The underlying reason for this accident is simple. Laurent studied his route on his main navigation software, Navionics Boating HD, which he has a subscription for and is accustomed to using. This version of the application displays the water levels and can be set according to the draught of his boat. The free version of Sailgrib that he launched by mistake on the day of his accident does not have the nautical charts. Let's add that Laurent, tired from a night on board, will not have had the saving reflex to display, in the application he launched by mistake, the useful information.
A wrong click for Laurent, who will undoubtedly remain one of the most expensive of his smartphone usage.
