Rescue at sea for sick baby

[LambChop]

Any child with a high fever dehydrates quickly especially if she was vomiting and loosing all her liquids. So I would imagine that the paramedics were able to hydrate her, as well. That would account for the baby's fast recovery. Not sure the Kaufmans had the ability to give her an IV. An EMT can't hook up an IV, only paramedics can do that. I find it hard to believe a doctor, Mexican or not, would diagnose her illness over a phone regardless of where they were. He should have instructed them to head back and call the coast guard if the baby got worse. Who would tell them to keep getting farther away from medical assistance when they have a sick child they can't manage? Or was this their decision alone not to head back.

This lawsuit sounds more like opening a can of worms for them. Not sure it is the best decision, but then taking their children across the Pacific in such a small boat was not the greatest decision either. jmo

 

[Kamille]

I notice they are also skipping over the fact that their VHF radio was damaged by the sea water that the boat was taking on and the fact that even in the coast guard manuals it indicates that you should have two of either device, a satelitte phone or a VHF radio. I would think crossing the Pacific 3000 miles in a relatively small, older model boat with known issues would be enough to make someone feel that an extra phone or radio might not be a bad idea just in case.

http://www.navcen.uscg.gov/?pageName=mtBoater

Based on what happened, I'd say they were not prepared for anything...at all.

MOO

 

[Kamille]

Well, here's an article with a response from sat phone company:

http://m.utsandiego.com/news/2014/jul/16/kaufman-family-boat-suit-whenever-communications/

Well at least that clears up the reason for the deactivation and that it was not a billing issue. I agree that they should have sent an email or text or called them on the phone prior to cutting off the service. I disagree that if the phone was working, the end result wouldn't have been the same. No US doctor was going to tell them to stay on that boat with a child who had an undiagnosed illness and continue their voyage and now, thanks to the complaint, it appears that they couldn't have turned around even if they had wanted to. So the only two options were to continue to get further from help while hoping the baby would get better, or to call for a rescue and get the baby to a hospital where she could be examined and assessed.

MOO

 

[redheadedgal]

their lawyer is responding to comments under that article... is that appropriate?

gitana? thnx.

 

[Kamille]

their lawyer is responding to comments under that article... is that appropriate?

gitana? thnx.

What? I heard he was an "ambulance chaser" but seriously?

Interesting. Eric indicated his radio was damaged by sea water in his forums posts. The lawyer is rewriting history by saying they had two that were out of range? I guess it's hard to dispute when the boat is at the bottom of the ocean. I wonder what the para rescuers are going to say when they are questioned about all this.

 

[inthedark14]

So do you think if they win the lawsuit they will make a suitable place or "tiny house" for their children to have a bedroom. Where they don't sleep on the floor? If they don't get enough money to buy another tiny boat and risk their children's lives on the open sea that is.

What does it take to have child services look at a home that was nearly set on fire and where the children sleep on the floor? Are CPS services in California that lax? I cannot for the life of me wrap my mind around this. They are posting these things for everyone to see on the internet, in fact mom and dad spend so much time on the internet while they are caring for their children one must wonder what kind of supervision these lovely girls actually have.

I'm very curious to hear what other people who "live small" have to say about a child sleeping with all those books over her head and a baby with her sister's feet in her face all night. Is it ok because they are on the (possibly) found foam material?

ALWAYS MOO

 

[Kamille]

<modsnip>

http://www.therebelheart.com/charlottes-blog/2014/4/13/overwhelmed-shocked-saddened.html

Where in that paragraph does it say anything about if only our satelite phone worked we would never have had to call for these men to rescue us and bring us to safety?

MOO

 

[redheadedgal]

their lawyer is responding to comments under that article... is that appropriate?

gitana? thnx.

here are two articles where the lawyer is still commenting...

http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2014/jul/16/kaufman-family-boat-suit-whenever-communications/

 

[redheadedgal]

http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2014/jul/14/sailboat-rescue-family-kaufman-lawsuit-phone/

 

[Linda7NJ]

http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2014/jul/14/sailboat-rescue-family-kaufman-lawsuit-phone/

From the link

"Charlotte said Eric knew he couldn’t sail the boat 1,000 miles back to shore on his own, and was forced to scuttle it."

On his own?

As opposed to "with his crew" which consisted of his wife and children???

Why couldn't Eric sail their "home" by himself the 1000 miles????

Roflmao! I really can not stand this couple!!!!!




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[Kamille]

here are two articles where the lawyer is still commenting...

http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2014/jul/16/kaufman-family-boat-suit-whenever-communications/

Looks like he's arguing his case via comment section on the Internet. Can't say as I've ever seen that before. Doesn't seem very professional or a smart thing to do IMO. I'm assuming his comments can be used against his clients during the trial if they conflict with other evidence that may be presented?

We do need Gitana to answer these legal questions.

 

[Kamille]

From the link

"Charlotte said Eric knew he couldn&#8217;t sail the boat 1,000 miles back to shore on his own, and was forced to scuttle it."

On his own?

As opposed to "with his crew" which consisted of his wife and children???

Why couldn't Eric sail their "home" by himself the 1000 miles????

Roflmao! I really can not stand this couple!!!!!




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According to their lawyer and the complaint, sailing home wasn't an option. I wonder how far he would have had to go before his "2 radios" were in range. (another comment made by the lawyer that contradicts what the Kaufmans said before the lawsuit) Well that's if he could have sailed back, which the complaint and the lawyers comments on that article say that he couldn't because of the trade winds.

Charlotte said it all when she said that they were "rescued" to the "safety" of the USS Vandegrift. This was a rescue, not a medical incident IMO.

 

[redheadedgal]

yes, she herself blogged about the "damaged vessel" (which we both already mentioned)...

 

[redheadedgal]

any weather experts here, who can interpret trade winds and sailing back east to the coast?

 

[redheadedgal]

i'm gonna go find gitana ...

 

[LambChop]

any weather experts here, who can interpret trade winds and sailing back east to the coast?

Not an expert but I believe the trade winds blow in one direction. Westerly, IMO. So going back, there would not have been enough fuel for EK to sail on this own. Remember they only had a limited amount of fuel left. jmo

 

[Kamille]

Anyone else wonder what they would have done if they had a brand new, bigger and more expensive sailboat, that was not damaged, and they were in the same position with no working satelite phone and no EPIRB? Do you think they would have scuttled that? What decisions might they have made differently?

I still believe that it was the combination of an inappropriate boat for that type of crossing, lack of an extra crew member and an extra satellite phone and either their inability to administer medication or their haste to get away so close to two family members having a serious illness, to make that time allotment for the crossing, that put them in the position they were in which required not only medical assistance for their baby, but a rescue for the entire family. I've seen the pictures of their boat alone in those swells. And of the day they got off the boat. Not to mention Charlottes description of how they were "rescued" and how they all stumbled onto the sturdiness of the Vandegrift. I can't see how that boat would have been safe to continue sailing even if the Navy had been able to help them sort out the satelitte phone issue. In fact, if Lyra had never gotten sick, I still wonder if they would have had to push the EPIRB anyway.


MOO

 

[Linda7NJ]

Anyone else wonder what they would have done if they had a brand new, bigger and more expensive sailboat, that was not damaged, and they were in the same position with no working satelite phone and no EPIRB? Do you think they would have scuttled that? What decisions might they have made differently?

I still believe that it was the combination of an inappropriate boat for that type of crossing, lack of an extra crew member and an extra satellite phone and either their inability to administer medication or their haste to get away so close to two family members having a serious illness, to make that time allotment for the crossing, that put them in the position they were in which required not only medical assistance for their baby, but a rescue for the entire family. I've seen the pictures of their boat alone in those swells. And of the day they got off the boat. Not to mention Charlottes description of how they were "rescued" and how they all stumbled onto the sturdiness of the Vandegrift. I can't see how that boat would have been safe to continue sailing even if the Navy had been able to help them sort out the satelitte phone issue. In fact, if Lyra had never gotten sick, I still wonder if they would have had to push the EPIRB anyway.


MOO

Way back when this story first broke I had wondered if it was all a scheme to get a book deal, donations, do the rounds on the morning shows, maybe a dateline special.
They had many followers of their blogs. Lots of "fans"
They were IMO genuinely shocked at the backlash and criticism they received. She spent days deleting negative posts on her blog.

They obviously needed a plan "B" and this lawsuit is it.

All IMO




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[Kamille]

Way back when this story first broke I had wondered if it was all a scheme to get a book deal, donations, do the rounds on the morning shows, maybe a dateline special.
They had many followers of their blogs. Lots of "fans"
They were IMO genuinely shocked at the backlash and criticism they received. She spent days deleting negative posts on her blog.

They obviously needed a plan "B" and this lawsuit is it.

All IMO




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I was a little skeptical about their intent in the beginning too but no one is that desperate to get rich quick IMO. I did, however, see the potential for them to make money on their story had they realized and admitted that they made a mistake trying to accomplish this trip with two young children in a small old boat that already had issues before they left. They mentioned all these other "cruising families" but not one has come forward to say that they too would have attempted that crossing with two toddlers in a boat the size, age and physical condition of the Kaufman's boat with vague "clearance" from a Mexican doctor after a very serious illness of a one year old baby. Not to mention only one experienced crew member.

So while I don't think calling for a rescue and scuttling the boat was a "scheme" to sell their story once things started to go south on the trip, I do think that in retrospect, it could have been done with a little more humility on their part. They needed a rescue. What they also needed to do was admit their liability in needing that rescue. The USCG and the Navy were never going to charge them for it. Maybe that was the fear they had in admitting any culpability? Or were they just angry at the backlash? Which was a direct result of their own Internet blogs and forum posts on the subject of their lifestyle.

I also wonder who decides to take everything they own, including their home, on a 3000 mile ocean voyage and does not insure it? I'm sure the premiums would have been high but that is the price you pay to "live the dream" IMO. You can't tell me other families out there, especially those with decent boats, are not insured. So this lawsuit, to me, is like someone who does not have home insurance, having a small fire that could have been put out easily to save the home with a phone call to the fire dept to find out if you should use water or an extinguisher to put it out. But the homeownwer only has a cell phone and there is a problem with it or an outage. So you get your family out and the house burns to the ground because you couldn't make a phone call. Is the cell phone company responsible for the cost of replacing the home and your pain and suffering because you didn't have a backup home phone or insurance?

I guess I've just never really understood any of the choices this couple has made, I believe that they alone are responsible for the situation that they find themselves in. I don't think a phone service provider should be financing their retirement in their 30's and their next "live the dream" adventure.

MOO

 

[MyBelle]

Way back when this story first broke I had wondered if it was all a scheme to get a book deal, donations, do the rounds on the morning shows, maybe a dateline special.
They had many followers of their blogs. Lots of "fans"
They were IMO genuinely shocked at the backlash and criticism they received. She spent days deleting negative posts on her blog.

They obviously needed a plan "B" and this lawsuit is it.

All IMO




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Well, I wish them luck. This lawsuit is going to be a long, difficult and almost impossible for them to win. The sat-phone company wasn't responsible for his decision to sink his deteriorating boat. All the lawsuit will bring is more public scrutiny to their incredibly poor parenting decisions.

JMO