Re: Hawaii Superferry - Chapter 7
I like the fact that the ship's skipper and HSF management are so confident that their spotters will be able (in the dark) to see a breaching whale at 100 or 200 yds. I like the fact that the skippers and HSF management are so confident the boat can "turn on a dime" to avoid the whales. Now, have the passengers on the ferry thought about what it would be like to be standing up when this "whale avoidance" occurred? Are there belts on the seats to ensure that passengers won't get hurt or thrown to the floor when such a maneuver occurs? Gee, wouldn't HSF be liable for some pretty massive injury lawsuits if this happened? So wouldn't it be better not to avoid the whales because whales can't sue as opposed to hurting passengers, who can? When you get your tickets, make sure you read the "fine print" to see if it doesn't say something like "purchaser of this ticket holds HSF not responsible for any injury or expense incurred while the boat is in progress."
I don't like the fact that they didn't bother to file for an incidental take permit from the feds in case they did hit a whale. They were either being really cocky about their ability, or they are counting on no one telling the feds if they do strike a whale. To hit a whale without one of these permits racks up a really nice fine.
When whale boats bump into whales, the majority of the time it's the WHALES bumping into the boats (curiosity) while they are idling and not the boats hitting the whales, but the whale nudges have to be reported too. And if boats going less way less than 20 kts can hit whales, what exponential quantity do you want to give to a boat going faster than 20 kts?
Miulang
P.S. If a powerboat going full speed and an adult humpback whale ever collided, I'd bet the whale would survive better than the idiots in the powerboat would.
Originally posted by joshuatree
View Post
I don't like the fact that they didn't bother to file for an incidental take permit from the feds in case they did hit a whale. They were either being really cocky about their ability, or they are counting on no one telling the feds if they do strike a whale. To hit a whale without one of these permits racks up a really nice fine.
When whale boats bump into whales, the majority of the time it's the WHALES bumping into the boats (curiosity) while they are idling and not the boats hitting the whales, but the whale nudges have to be reported too. And if boats going less way less than 20 kts can hit whales, what exponential quantity do you want to give to a boat going faster than 20 kts?
Miulang
P.S. If a powerboat going full speed and an adult humpback whale ever collided, I'd bet the whale would survive better than the idiots in the powerboat would.
Comment