Navarre’s navigation specialists find certain common keys that explain the fatal accident that occurred in the Eo estuary and that ended the life of the young Navarrese David Botín García-Planas, 22 years old in Ribadeo.
angel gonzalezof the Navarre Sailing FederationY Juanma Erreaof Navarra Nautical Schoolexplain that the masts made of aluminum or carbon fiber, even if it is made of wood, “they are great conductors of electricity and they usually have warning stickers about the danger they may have if they come into contact with an electrical current. For this reason, whoever is in contact with the conductive element dies and other people on the same boat may be unharmed”, recalls González, who also warns that sometimes direct contact between the mast and the high-voltage cable is not even necessary, since that sometimes arcs of static electricity are generated that produce such magnetism that they lead to the contact of both elements. Thus, he details that a similar accident occurred, for example, on the Trabucador beach, in the Ebro delta, a couple of decades ago.
“Masts are great conductors of electricity and have an express warning about it”
Ángel González – President of the Navarre Sailing Federation
Errea adds that in France, for example, there have been several incidents with sailboats of this type and details that the one the young Navarrese was sailing on is a very traditional light wooden sailboat from the Ribadeo estuary.
“The high rise of the tide surely brought the boat very close to the shore and there it could have come into contact with the cable”
Juanma Errea – Navarra Nautical School
“It’s a fucking accident. Boats of this type usually have risks like the one that has occurred here, because they are boats that can reach nooks and crannies through which larger boats cannot pass. At the time the accident occurred (6:00 p.m. on Sunday) there was a high tide at the site, which made it possible for the sailboat to enter very close to the shore. Yesterday there was a significant spring tide in the area, that is, a large difference between low and high tide. Therefore, by catching them at high tide and the water being higher, you can reach very shallow places more easily. The high rise of the spring tide could have brought the ship closer to that place so close to the shore where the accident occurred and it may have caused a slight lack of control in the maneuver and ended up touching the cable in this way”.
