Italy - Sailing yacht sank off Italian coast, 15 rescued, 7 missing, 19 August 2024

[Dotta]

Crew. Were All Fluent in a Common Language? Language Barrier?

@RedHaus Thanks for your post w listing of crew members' ages, good point.

My title pretty much says it. Even in a crisis where everyone is fluent in a shared language, it's easy for miscommunications to happen.
Did all the crew members speak a common language?

Is it reasonable to guess, w a Kiwi captain & British passengers/guests (were some from other countries?) that it would be English? IDK.

Despite some crew hailing from Myanmar,* Ireland,** France,*** The Netherlands,**** it's possible they all spoke English fluently.

Also what about language of WEATHER REPORTS? Broadcast? Online? Or ?

Regardless, even if weather was the only/primary direct cause, circumstances would have been ripe for miscommunication.
What a tragedy.


____________________________
Languages, per wiki
* Official = Burmese.
** English, Irish, & Ulster Scots dialect.
*** Official = French.
**** Official = Dutch.

Crew of 8 different nationalities
Phew!

"The crew, some of whom were in their early 20s,
kept to themselves and often sat together at the resort’s bar or restaurant, reacting with a firm
'no comment'
every time a Times reporter approached them."

Captain of Sunken Yacht Under Investigation in Deaths on Ship

The investigation does not necessarily imply that formal charges will follow against the captain, James Cutfield.

www.nytimes.com

 

[branmuffin]

Crew. Were All Fluent in a Common Language? Language Barrier?

@RedHaus Thanks for your post w listing of crew members' ages, good point.

My title pretty much says it. Even in a crisis where everyone is fluent in a shared language, it's easy for miscommunications to happen.
Did all the crew members speak a common language?

Is it reasonable to guess, w a Kiwi captain & British passengers/guests (were some from other countries?) that it would be English? IDK.

Despite some crew hailing from Myanmar,* Ireland,** France,*** The Netherlands,**** it's possible they all spoke English fluently.

Also what about language of WEATHER REPORTS? Broadcast? Online? Or ?

Regardless, even if weather was the only/primary direct cause, circumstances would have been ripe for miscommunication.
What a tragedy.


____________________________
Languages, per wiki
* Official = Burmese.
** English, Irish, & Ulster Scots dialect.
*** Official = French.
**** Official = Dutch.

I think at least 8 of those crew members would be fluent in English. Many Germans and Dutch can speak English. South Africans can usually speak English as well as the obvious ones: New Zealander, Irish, English, Scottish. The French citizen with an English name probably spoke English. The deceased cook probably also spoke English since he was English/Antiguan. It would be insanity to have even one crew member on board who couldn't speak English, depending on what role they played. Not trying to throw shade on the owners of the ship, but I can say this as a fellow Brit, very few of us can speak a foreign language. And those that do, are usually bilingual because they come from immigrant families.

 

[SouthAussie]

Youth is the thing among professional sailors. Many of them start sailing when they are 8/9/10 years old. By the time they are 18 some of them are sailing professionally.
They need the young and agile to climb the mast to fix problems, to hang off the bow and fix problems.

A friend's son spends Aussie winters/European summers in professional yacht races all around Europe. Large boats contact him to ask him to be part of their crew. They get paid well.
He is now 36 and is considered an old-timer. But he has been sailing since he was very young, was sought out for his first big international yacht race when he was 18. He is very skilled, and language doesn't seem to be a barrier. They instinctively know what to do, what their position is, work well together, and many Europeans speak English.

imo

 

[Dotta]

Youth is the thing among professional sailors. Many of them start sailing when they are 8/9/10 years old. By the time they are 18 some of them are sailing professionally.
They need the young and agile to climb the mast to fix problems, to hang off the bow and fix problems.

A friend's son spends Aussie winters/European summers in professional yacht races all around Europe. Large boats contact him to ask him to be part of their crew. They get paid well.
He is now 36 and is considered an old-timer. But he has been sailing since he was very young, was sought out for his first big international yacht race when he was 18. He is very skilled, and language doesn't seem to be a barrier. They instinctively know what to do, what their position is, work well together, and many Europeans speak English.

imo

Well ...
They certainly are agile.
After all,
they managed to survive.

JMO

 

[RedHaus]

Youth is the thing among professional sailors. Many of them start sailing when they are 8/9/10 years old. By the time they are 18 some of them are sailing professionally. They need the young and agile to climb the mast to fix problems, to hang off the bow and fix problems

RSBM
Yes, @SouthAussie I can't disagree. I have experienced this myself on much smaller sailing yachts in the Caribbean. The crew - captain and cook / first mate - are often quite young, in their mid 20s or so, and very skilled.

But I guess my concern with this tragic situation is the experience such a young crew would have had with life and death high stress situations, with complex, urgent decision making and communication requirements? IMHO that comes with age, but that is a guess for me when it comes to maritime crises.

I've also read this magnificent yacht was very sophisticated with many electronic controls, even for the sailing systems and mechanisms. So I have to wonder - not knowing if I should - whether great analog sailing skills can easily translate to a more digital vessel?

So I welcome your further thoughts.

 

[al66pine]

Crew and Language?

I think at least 8 of those crew members would be fluent in English. Many Germans and Dutch can speak English. South Africans can usually speak English as well as the obvious ones: New Zealander, Irish, English, Scottish. The French citizen with an English name probably spoke English. The deceased cook probably also spoke English since he was English/Antiguan. It would be insanity to have even one crew member on board who couldn't speak English, depending on what role they played. Not trying to throw shade on the owners of the ship, but I can say this as a fellow Brit, very few of us can speak a foreign language. And those that do, are usually bilingual because they come from immigrant families.

@branmuffin Thanks for the post w your thoughts on the language issue.
Tend to agree.

Ooops. my earlier post overlooked crew member from South Africa.
Checked official languages there on wiki: Twelve of them, w English being one.

 

[SouthAussie]

RSBM
Yes, @SouthAussie I can't disagree. I have experienced this myself on much smaller sailing yachts in the Caribbean. The crew - captain and cook / first mate - are often quite young, in their mid 20s or so, and very skilled.

But I guess my concern with this tragic situation is the experience such a young crew would have had with life and death high stress situations, with complex, urgent decision making and communication requirements? IMHO that comes with age, but that is a guess for me when it comes to maritime crises.

I've also read this magnificent yacht was very sophisticated with many electronic controls, even for the sailing systems and mechanisms. So I have to wonder - not knowing if I should - whether great analog sailing skills can easily translate to a more digital vessel?

So I welcome your further thoughts.

The thing with sailing is that all of the sailors would have experienced many situations where their boat capsized/tipped/rolled due to the constant uncertainty of ocean waters. They would have learned how to personally get out of these situations and stay alive. And they try to help others as a team. Loss of life at sea shakes all sailors up. They mourn it greatly. imo

The responsibility falls on the captain, because at 51 years old he was leading the team. I don't know when he became injured - but it seems evident (from reading sailing forums about this tragedy) that they all would have been on-deck battling the storm when the boat rolled. Whether or not they could hear each other yelling instructions over the loudness of the storm is another thing.