Surviving a Tsunami?

[Coogeeman]

Dear All

I'm in Thailand at the moment and I am heading down to the effected area (Krabi and Phi Phi) to help in the rescue efforts. Here's the question:

If you see a 6m (29 ft) wall of water coming towards the boat that you are on and you are about to dive do you (A) Get in the water as quick as you can and go deep hoping that the wall will pass over you or do you (B) stay in the boat and prey that you survive the wall?

Coming from Australia we deal with waves, large ones at that, on a daily basis and the way to beat smaller waves is just to head straight at that them in the hope of going over the top of them. There was one account of a sailing boat doing that this time around and they survived although the captain did say that at one stage they were verticle. A lot of the boat deaths occured by boats trying to out run the wave or by going at speed sideways. They don't have any kind of waves in Thailand and therefore don't know how to combat them.

I'm in quandry but I think that I would go deep knowing that the boat wouldn't know what to do. I'm interested in what you think if you were in that situation?

Many thanks

Coogeeman

 

[jbd]

Dear All

I'm in Thailand at the moment and I am heading down to the effected area (Krabi and Phi Phi) to help in the rescue efforts. Here's the question:

If you see a 6m (29 ft) wall of water coming towards the boat that you are on and you are about to dive do you (A) Get in the water as quick as you can and go deep hoping that the wall will pass over you or do you (B) stay in the boat and prey that you survive the wall?

Coming from Australia we deal with waves, large ones at that, on a daily basis and the way to beat smaller waves is just to head straight at that them in the hope of going over the top of them. There was one account of a sailing boat doing that this time around and they survived although the captain did say that at one stage they were verticle. A lot of the boat deaths occured by boats trying to out run the wave or by going at speed sideways. They don't have any kind of waves in Thailand and therefore don't know how to combat them.

I'm in quandry but I think that I would go deep knowing that the boat wouldn't know what to do. I'm interested in what you think if you were in that situation?

Many thanks

Coogeeman

Off the boat and as deep as I can get as quick as I can. Close to shore though, I doubt it would help.

Wishing you all the best during the ardous task ahead of you.

 

[tkrock]

I think the water would be better. Think on a boat you have other people, bags, boat stuff, you name it coming at you and possibly hurting you. In the water you have the wave. I'd agree at the shore you're out of luck.

 

[pilot fish]

Dear All

I'm in Thailand at the moment and I am heading down to the effected area (Krabi and Phi Phi) to help in the rescue efforts. Here's the question:

If you see a 6m (29 ft) wall of water coming towards the boat that you are on and you are about to dive do you (A) Get in the water as quick as you can and go deep hoping that the wall will pass over you or do you (B) stay in the boat and prey that you survive the wall?

Coming from Australia we deal with waves, large ones at that, on a daily basis and the way to beat smaller waves is just to head straight at that them in the hope of going over the top of them. There was one account of a sailing boat doing that this time around and they survived although the captain did say that at one stage they were verticle. A lot of the boat deaths occured by boats trying to out run the wave or by going at speed sideways. They don't have any kind of waves in Thailand and therefore don't know how to combat them.

I'm in quandry but I think that I would go deep knowing that the boat wouldn't know what to do. I'm interested in what you think if you were in that situation?

Many thanks

Coogeeman

Definitely ON the boat. Head the boat straight into the wave head on, full power, with all my gear on, air on, and reg in my mouth. This way I have the option to hit the water after the wave has passed if boat does not make the swell, hang on to the boat if need be, steer the boat if it's made it, which it might have, since it was just a giant swell, not a crested wave in near shore. Many boats did not make it since the Indonesians had never seen large waves before and tried to outrun it paralell to the wave instead of right into it full speed. Nope, ON the boat.

 

[DORSETBOY]

Definitely ON the boat.

yep, if the water's shallow enough for the wave to have 'broken', I doubt you could get deep enough to avoid the powerful surge underwater that I would imagine would be pretty deadly in itself.