Displaying items by tag: Ecuador

19th October 2021

Brazilian Tall Ship Strikes Bridge in Ecuador

A tall ship from Brazil left onlookers breathless when it collided with a pedestrian bridge over a river in Ecuador on Monday (18 October).

As reported by Marine Industry News, the Brazilian naval training vessel Cisne Branco (White Swan) had been visiting the city of Guayaquil for a number of days before it drifted into the bridge in what appears to be a strong current and listed heavily on its port side.

The Amsterdam-built ship was righted to even keel with the help of tugs — but in the process one of the tugs was capsized. No injuries were reported among the crews of either vessels.

CNN Brazil carried a video report of the incident which can be viewed below:

Published in Tall Ships

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28th January 2018

Friends Of Tragic Kayakers Raising Funds To Bring Their Remains Home

#Ecuador - Friends of two Irish kayakers who died in Ecuador last weekend have raised more than €27,000 to bring their bodies back home.

According to Joe.ie, the crowdfunding campaign was set up by friends of David Higgins and Alex McGourty to help their families cover the cost of repatriating the young men’s remains.

“They were vibrant, kind souls who lived life to its full potential, and words cannot describe what they meant to their family and friends,” says the GoFundMe page where donations can be made towards its €30,000 goal.

Published in News Update

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24th January 2018

Body Of Second Irishman Found After Ecuador Kayaking Incident

#Ecuador - The body of a Tralee man has been recovered after a kayaking incident in central Ecuador that claimed the life of a Sligoman at the weekend, as previously reported on Afloat.ie.

According to The Irish Times, 26-year-old David Higgins went missing on Saturday afternoon (20 January) on a kayaking trip with four other men when his vessel was caught in a strong current on the Abanico river.

The body of Alex McGourty from Sligo was found soon after the incident, while American Jeremiah Stewart was rescued that same day.

Ecuadorian Joaqin Meneses was found alive on Monday (22 January). A fifth man, Adam Vaughen from England, is still missing.

The Irish Times has much more on the story HERE.

Published in News Update

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21st January 2018

Sligo Man Reportedly Dies In Ecuador Canoeing Accident UPDATED

#Ecuador - Afloat.ie has learned of unconfirmed reports that an Irishman has died in a canoeing accident in Ecuador today (Sunday 21 January).

The deceased is believed to be a member of Sligo Kayak Club. There is as yet no other details as to the location or circumstances of the incident.

Canoeing Ireland chief executive Paddy Boyd told Afloat.ie they are still waiting for more information, but extend their sympathies to the families of those involved.

Update on Sunday 21 January at 1700hrs: Sligo Kayak Club has offered its condolences to the family of club member and trainee-instructor Alex McGourty, 'who tragically died while fulfilling his dreams, kayaking in Ecuador'.

The club statement says: 'It is with profound sadness we announce the passing of club member and trainee-instructor Alex McGourty. The club would like to extend our deepest and heartfelt sympathies to Alex's parents Frankie and Eilish, his family and his friends. Alex will be greatly missed by all in Sligo Kayak Club. He was one of the finest young men we had the honour of knowing and paddling with. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam'.

Published in Canoeing

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The Half Ton Class was created by the Offshore Racing Council for boats within the racing band not exceeding 22'-0". The ORC decided that the rule should "....permit the development of seaworthy offshore racing yachts...The Council will endeavour to protect the majority of the existing IOR fleet from rapid obsolescence caused by ....developments which produce increased performance without corresponding changes in ratings..."

When first introduced the IOR rule was perfectly adequate for rating boats in existence at that time. However yacht designers naturally examined the rule to seize upon any advantage they could find, the most noticeable of which has been a reduction in displacement and a return to fractional rigs.

After 1993, when the IOR Mk.III rule reached it termination due to lack of people building new boats, the rule was replaced by the CHS (Channel) Handicap system which in turn developed into the IRC system now used.

The IRC handicap system operates by a secret formula which tries to develop boats which are 'Cruising type' of relatively heavy boats with good internal accommodation. It tends to penalise boats with excessive stability or excessive sail area.

Competitions

The most significant events for the Half Ton Class has been the annual Half Ton Cup which was sailed under the IOR rules until 1993. More recently this has been replaced with the Half Ton Classics Cup. The venue of the event moved from continent to continent with over-representation on French or British ports. In later years the event is held biennially. Initially, it was proposed to hold events in Ireland, Britain and France by rotation. However, it was the Belgians who took the ball and ran with it. The Class is now managed from Belgium.