What is the Worst Boating Accident You’ve Ever Heard of?

Although it occurred well before our time, the worst boating accident we’ve ever heard of was the Titanic disaster in 1912. Like most boating accidents, the Titanic sinking was not an unavoidable and inevitable “accident.” Instead, a string of negligent actions and inactions lead to the deaths of some 1,600 people. We examine some of these negligent actions and inactions, which often apply to modern boating accidents as well, in this post.

“Man overboard” drownings are the signature boating accident injuries. Other serious injuries include collision-related injuries and onboard falls.

When a boat collides with another boat or another fixed object, the sudden, jarring motion often causes head injuries and internal injuries. The brain slams against the skull and vital organs rub against one another. Absent proper supervision, falls are practically inevitable on rolling and pitching decks that are often wet as well.

White Star Lines, the Titanic’s owner, didn’t compensate victims until 1915. Even then, its lawyers used a fifty-year-old legal loophole to limit compensation to $950 per survivor. Little has changed in the past century. Tortfeasors (negligent parties) still do whatever it takes to reduce or deny compensation to victims. So, a Los Angeles boating accident lawyer must strongly advocate for them.

Ignoring Safety Warnings

Even today, icebergs are common in the frigid North Atlantic during early spring months. During its fateful voyage from the United Kingdom to New York City, the Titanic received six iceberg warnings. But perhaps due to overconfidence (more on that below), the captain didn’t reduce speed or take other precautions (more on that below as well).

Ignoring iceberg warnings is like a failure to follow the rules of the road for boats. These informal safety rules which all boaters must know and follow include:

• If a head-on collision is possible, both vessels steer to the right.
• Non-powered craft, like sailboats and paddleboards, always have the right-of-way over powered vessels, like jetskis and motorboats.
• When one boat passes another, the give-way (overtaking) vessel must pass safely, usually to the right, and ensure that its wake doesn’t hit the stand-on (overtaken) vessel.
• If two boats cross paths, the vessel with the other boat on its starboard (right) side is the give-way vessel and must steer to pass behind.

Many California boaters are unfamiliar with these rules. The Golden State allows almost anyone, even people with no experience at all, to operate almost any kind of boat.

Dangerously High Speed

The Titanic was traveling about 40mph when it struck that iceberg. 40mph doesn’t seem very fast. But given the boat’s size and inability to stop quickly, 40mph on a dark night in the North Atlantic is almost like 140mph on a dark road in California.

Due to a lack of experience, many California boaters have the same mindset. Many boaters believe that boats are like cars, and to an extent, that comparison is correct. But boats, unlike cars, don’t have brakes. They must drift to a stop.

An inability to stop is just one issue. Excessive speed also increases the risk of a wreck and the force in a collision. Speeding boaters have less time to react to unexpected hazards. Given a boat’s inability to turn quickly, this difference is a very big deal.

Furthermore, according to Newton’s Second Law of Gravity, speed multiplies the force in a collision between two objects.

Inadequate Number of Lifeboats

The Titanic technically complied with the safety rules in this area. But boat owners have a responsibility to look beyond a law’s technical requirements.

The lifeboat requirement was low at the time because it was assumed that lifeboats would ferry passengers from distressed vessels to rescue vessels, not carry all passengers at once. A ship crossing the empty North Atlantic should have been better equipped to handle these emergencies.

Like WSL technically complied with the lifeboat rule, many boat owners technically comply with California law when they rent boats to landlubbers. Instead of spending a few minutes with these boaters to explain things like the rules of the road, boat owners simply run their credit cards and hand them the keys.

As a result, the boat owner could be financially responsible for boat accident damages, under the negligent entrustment doctrine.

Design Overconfidence

A common denominator in all these areas of negligence is that the Titanic was supposedly an “unsinkable” ship. So, to its owners and operators, things like safety warnings, vessel speed, and onboard lifeboats didn’t matter.

Overconfidence is a form of operator impairment. Operator impairment, such as alcohol use or fatigue, causes over half of the boating accidents in California.

Frequently, a boating accident lawyer in Los Angeles can obtain additional compensation in operator impairment crash cases. Arguably, these tortfeasors know they cannot safely operate boats. But they get behind the wheel anyway and intentionally put other people at risk.

One final Titanic note. Subsequent inquiries, which recommended sweeping changes to maritime regulations, led to the 1914 International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea. SOLAS, which hasn’t been significantly amended or updated in decades, still governs maritime safety today. We’re not sure if that’s good or bad.

Contact Our Boat Accident Lawyers Today!

Ever since boats first hit the water, boating accidents, usually due to operator or owner negligence, have been a constant safety threat. If you or a loved one had his or her name added to the tragically long list of victims, contact experienced Boat Accident Lawyers in California at the Law Offices of Eslamboly Hakim for a free consultation.