Undeniably Double Trouble

We had a sport fishing charter boat sink in the small boat harbor this last week. The vessel Double Trouble seems aptly named now. After insuring there was no risk from oil pollution by placing an adsorbent boom around the boat, harbor personnel removed the vessel from the water.

An investigation revealed the failure of a flexible bilge pump hose connected to a thru hull fitting located a couple inches above the waterline at the stern of the vessel. Once the weight of a recent snowfall forced the boat lower in the water, the broken hose allowed water to enter the boat.

More information on damage control and the maintenance of thru-hull fittings is in the article titled Thru-hull Fitting Emergencies. A few hints include:

• Install thru-hull fittings made of corrosion resistant material
• Use a quality marine sealant during installation
• Replace existing hose clamps with new corrosion resistant clamps annually.
• Use two clamps at a time on the thru-hull fitting.
• Inspect thru-hull fittings every few months.

Tags: Boating Safety, Vessel Maintenance, Damage Control

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Why participate in an AW Blogchain?

A group of freelance writer's at Absolute Write (AW) have actively participated in what we call the Absolute Write Blogchain. There are many benefits for those that play a part in the experience. We operate under these basic guidelines:

• First person in the chain finds the last post of the last post and takes an element from that to base their blog post on so that the previous chain and this chain are connected.
• Second and subsequent participants in the chain will take an element from the entry before theirs and incorporate it into their post. So for me to post an entry, I need to read yours and find something about your post.
• The last person in the chain takes an element from the post before theirs and from the first post to tie the chain together.

This is the start of Absolute Write Blogchain No.8 and I am writing the first entry based on the last post from ol' No.7 from Techtainment. Razib's post was on the four benefits for writers participating in the AW Blog. Briefly, these included link development, improvement in their Google Page Rank, community interest generated by comments, and the enjoyment of working with the others involved in the project.

I have to second Razib's comments on the writers involved with AW. The interaction, support and help provided has been overwhelming to me. AW defines what a positive community can do for its members. And it's a two-way street, you find there are equal measures of enjoyment assisting a fellow writer, as the relief felt after someone helps you out of a tight spot.

AW is a solid resource for writers. You can bounce a idea off the others, research a question, start a political argument and find a assignment. These are all the things that we need to keep the wheels turning and ideas fresh. Consider participating in AW Blogchain No.9!

The next blog in the chain will be BK_30 at Just A Small Town Girl.

Tags: Absolute Write Blogchain No.8, awchain, AW, Absolute Write

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Pacific Fishing Magazine

I had my first article published in the December 2006 issue of Pacific Fishing magazine. It was on infrastructure improvements made by the City of Valdez to better support the commercial fishing industry. We have been doing a lot to improve harbor facilities and encourage fishermen to deliver here and work out of our harbor.

I have a couple more articles in the mill for Pacific Fishing including one on innovative fish processing and another on funding for deferred harbor maintenance. Cheap thrill, but I'm on the masthead for the magazine now. Cool.

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