'Ghost yacht' found off Australia

[scandi]

Yes, That's our Buzz, on track with how to learn more so we can firgure out the puzzle! Frank, meet Buzz, our expert at timelines and statistics that affect crimes or situations.

Nice to meet you Frank! Your reputation precedes you, as does that of our Buzz. I can hardly wait to see what you come up with.


Hi Narlacat, What I meant was that these men who disappeared are not young bucks. They are close to my age lolololol, just like Grumpy Old Men, but not maybe grumpy, simply adsventurous but slower moving that they used to be! Lordie Do, it happens to us all! Scandi

 

[IrishMist]

I don't know Kazzbar, We have 3 OLD MEN for victims!

Old guys like money as well as young guys. It's possible it was a drug deal gone bad...

 

[kazzbar]

Old guys like money as well as young guys. It's possible it was a drug deal gone bad...

I just think most scenarios are possible because it is all sooo strange.. could they have just been swept off by a freak wave? I do not think we are really going to find out..Why were the clothes all folded on deck? So many wierd little occurances. Did they just all decide to dissappear and start again?

 

[IrishMist]

I just think most scenarios are possible because it is all sooo strange.. could they have just been swept off by a freak wave? I do not think we are really going to find out..Why were the clothes all folded on deck? So many wierd little occurances. Did they just all decide to dissappear and start again?

I don't know what to think about those clothes... I read one article where the official "dismissed" the reports about the clothes being folded, and another where they described them as "piled."

I like the idea of a central location for information- what is actual and what's not!

 

[kazzbar]

I don't know what to think about those clothes... I read one article where the official "dismissed" the reports about the clothes being folded, and another where they described them as "piled."

I like the idea of a central location for information- what is actual and what's not!

Yes, the clothes irk me a lot.I think we are dealing with miss information in the media. Piled suggests a swimand folded is more measured and a bit out of the normal, do'nt you think? This case really has not drawn as much coverage here as it deserves.

 

[IrishMist]

Yes, the clothes irk me a lot.I think we are dealing with miss information in the media. Piled suggests a swimand folded is more measured and a bit out of the normal, do'nt you think? This case really has not drawn as much coverage here as it deserves.

I agree with your entire post!

 

[scandi]

Good Morning,

If there was a big wave that took them overbord, it would have taken the clothes too.

The bad stormy weather was in the afternoon, so I think they might have all gotten wet then with fresh water from heaven! why would they go swimming in salt water after that?

Plus, the info we learned yesterday about the call being logged in around 6:45pm, after dark, when they said they were all OK, says they lived through the storm just fine.

We don't know when the sail got ripped, but if it was shredded or tattered, it didn't happen that day, as that takes a bit of time to do that. It could have ripped, but not be tattered I don't think. Could be wrong about that. But drifting and a ruined sail seem to go hand in hand for the same reason they were in trouble.


Now, I do think that call is odd. Had they called in before on their trip to say they were OK? Odd the same day the fenders were left hanging over the side of the boat. How many days had they been out of port? A week - can't remember. They had been drifting, so that means they had no motor? Had they put out a distress call because their main sail was non-functional? Lots of things to find out.

I am still thinking they were boarded, taken off the ship thinking they were being rescued, and before they were taken were forced to make that OK so everyone would think they were OK.


Hi Buzz, Yea, I knew I was putting myself in that catagory of being an 'old lady' by saying that. Within a week I'll be 63, and baby, that's gettin' up there. It is mostly a state of mind though. I said 'mostly'! LOLOLOLOL Scandi

 

[TheShadow]

They said that the motor was running, idling probably, when the boat was found. So they weren't stranded and shouldn't have needed to be "rescued". Could simply have motored to shore if their sail was not functional. I also can't imagine what pirates would take them off the boat for, and then leave the boat and the various valuables behind. The whole purpose of piracy is to rob the folks and steal their boat.
I don't have a theory as to what happened. It seems that if they were thrown overboard, they wouldn't have been able to remove their clothes first. If one was a non-swimmer, it doesn't make sense that he went for a dip and got swept away by current. All the non-swimmers I know stay the heck out of deep water. Since the clothes weren't all wet and soggy or washed overboard, a rogue wave is out. The only thing left is that for some reason they left on another boat, due to the fenders being out, but the piracy angle doesn't add up for the above reasons...????

 

[IrishMist]

I also think that if it were stormy/rough, they would have worn life jackets.

Even the weak swimmer is liable to hang around on deck in a bathing suit to enjoy the sun.

Didn't they have a fishing line out?

To me, the fenders being out is important.

Also, pirates, pissed off drug dealers, whoever... may have had interest in the people, not necessarily their belongings. Taking someone's stuff ties you to a crime.

 

[Buzz Mills]

The orderliness of everything on the boat belies a rogue wave, or rough weather, sweeping them off of the boat. In regard to the tattered sail, I thought perhaps something, i.e. a gunshot had initated the beginning of the tearing of the sail, thus the need for a rigorous inspection of it. However, had they been threatened in this manner, one would think they would have made a distress call. I've read reports that said the radio wasn't working, and reports that said the radio was working; I'm uncertain which is the truth.

 

[AlwaysShocked]

I think I would prefer that we refer to these three men as OLDER as opposed to OLD. Ahem.....

Okay, so they were not swept overboard by the high winds of a storm that took place the same afternoon they left the harbor.

They were okay at 6:45 Pm that evening - okay enough to voluntarily call in their position. And, obviously, the radio worked at that time. And they had made a decision to call in their position - which is a volutary thing, not required.

Next questions:
What time does it get dark where they were? Was it dark by the time they called in their position?

What type of food was on that table that was set and had food on it? Dinner food or breakfast food? (This could provide clues as to whether they slept on the boat that night.)

I also think the fact that the boat was found IDLING is important. When does one IDLE one's boat when out at sea? Why does one IDLE?

Folded clothes, boat idling. What does this scenario mean to any sailors who read here?

My only experience with torn main sail: Once went sailing with inexperienced crew. Lowered main sail and tied it down. Anchored in port and slept the night. Wind up the next morning. Began to raise main sail for departure. Someone failed to remove one of the main sail tie-downs. Wind caught sail and it ri-i-i-i-i-ped!

Any input appreciated.

 

[TheShadow]

Good point about what type of food was on the table. Excellent clue to the approximate time of "the incident". But not helpful as to what day it occured. Sail was ripped for some reason, so they were using the motor. Idling tells me that they were attempting to stay still for some length of time. Possibly to allow the mystery boat to pull along side. Maybe they were out on deck catching a few rays, so the took off their shirts, etc and then went downstairs for lunch when some other boat made it's presence known and they went up to greet these other people and through the fenders out, put the boat into neutral, and then....what? Left with these other people? why?

 

[C.Whalen]

Three men wouldn't fold their clothes neatly and leave them on the deck, but if a female was on board she might. Maybe the boat didn't only have the three men like reported. If one or more of these guy's were taking a sailing holiday with someone other than their wives they sure wouldn't have announced it. So maybe we just assume the boat only had three people sailing. I also don't know if men would go to the task of fixing a nice table and cooking up a meal. Don't guys on vacation just drink beer and eat jerky?
But as to why they all disappeared. Maybe to start a new life, maybe if females or a female were/was accompanying them and a rogue boat came on the scene with the intent of no good, the men would have to be disposed of before the kidnapping of the female passengers could take place.

 

[scandi]

Good points here.


I read at CTV I think that it got dark around 5:30. I'll check that.

I did a lot of Salmon fishing on the Oregon Coast, and know that when we were fishing, often the captain put the boat in idle when we were reeling in a fish. A boat pulling alongside is another good reason to put it in idle Shadow.

Clothes, either folded or in a pile up on deck is most unusual for real boating. They could be taken by the wind, right? Clothes on deck tell me they had brought them up from below or the cabin, getting ready to leave. That is unless there was a problem down below and they didn't want their clothes to be damaged. But there was nothing we heard about problems like this.

BTW, on a Catamaran, is there a down below area? Where is it? I have been boating on a boat like this, and there is a cabin but no rooms down there. That is the point of a Catamaran. Two pontoons with space between them skim over the water and is virtually unsinkable. It can't be tipped over in the water.

Scandi

 

[Buzz Mills]

When they mentioned the radio contact at 6:45PM, they said that was an hour, or so, after dark.

The motor idling was probably SOP for recharging the batteries.

Everything in place likely means that no rough weather was experienced after the men departed the KAZ II.


Good Picture of the Tattered Sail
http://www.geelongadvertiser.com.au/article/2007/04/22/3096_news.html

Ghost yacht rescuer tells of winch into eerie calm

"One thing that was especially odd was that everything was still on the table so they mustn't have gone through any rough weather."

http://www.geelongadvertiser.com.au/article/2007/04/22/3099_news.html

The KAZ II--wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaz_II

 

[kahskye]

I thought I had read that the beds appeared to have been slept in.

 

[scandi]

Here is the time:

Sunrise: 6:26 am
Sunset: 5:56 pm

Yahoo weather

 

[Buzz Mills]

I thought I had read that the beds appeared to have been slept in.

Yes, the beds had been used. Those here, straddling middle, and old, age, know that those old(er) duffers probably took their afternoon nap.

 

[narlacat]

Three men wouldn't fold their clothes neatly and leave them on the deck, but if a female was on board she might. Maybe the boat didn't only have the three men like reported. If one or more of these guy's were taking a sailing holiday with someone other than their wives they sure wouldn't have announced it. So maybe we just assume the boat only had three people sailing. I also don't know if men would go to the task of fixing a nice table and cooking up a meal. Don't guys on vacation just drink beer and eat jerky?
But as to why they all disappeared. Maybe to start a new life, maybe if females or a female were/was accompanying them and a rogue boat came on the scene with the intent of no good, the men would have to be disposed of before the kidnapping of the female passengers could take place.

I think thats the most likely scenario-

 

[Floh]

Three men wouldn't fold their clothes neatly and leave them on the deck, but if a female was on board she might. Maybe the boat didn't only have the three men like reported. If one or more of these guy's were taking a sailing holiday with someone other than their wives they sure wouldn't have announced it. So maybe we just assume the boat only had three people sailing. I also don't know if men would go to the task of fixing a nice table and cooking up a meal. Don't guys on vacation just drink beer and eat jerky?
But as to why they all disappeared. Maybe to start a new life, maybe if females or a female were/was accompanying them and a rogue boat came on the scene with the intent of no good, the men would have to be disposed of before the kidnapping of the female passengers could take place.

I beg to differ. my b/f folds his clothes while i leave mine in an untidy heap. :blushing: