Letter: Help me find boat saviour

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 6: Dear Sir,

I had the pleasure of visiting your beautiful island recently. I have been many times before as I fell in love with the scenery, shops, restaurants, and many more things, but mainly the wonderful people of Bermuda.

On this occasion I rented a Boston whaler in Somerset on Thursday, September 22. They went over the operating procedures and what to do in case of an emergency.

Unfortunately, I had to put this to the test. I left the marina and started to enter the channel to more open water. Suddenly the motor died. I put it into neutral and pulled on the cord to start the motor but nothing happened. I tried priming the gas but that didn't work either. I lowered the anchor but I continued to drift. (I guess the water was deeper than the 30 feet of rope) I blew the whistle they provided several times but no one heard me.

I tried to use my cell phone but it said "emergency calls only". In the distance I see a group of people in kayaks. I start waving my hands and calling out that I need help.

One man starts paddling towards me and I feel great relief that I am not alone any more. I tell him the problem so he comes aboard and tries to start the motor. It doesn't work for him either so he tried to prime the gas and said it didn't feel right.

He checks further and discovers that the coupling on the gas tank is loose and the gas is not getting to the motor. Once he tightens it the engine starts right up. It was a lucky coincidence for me that he is a captain of a tour boat and had come along at just the right time to help me out.

I was going to Dockyard and suggested that I would like to buy him lunch as a thank you for his help. Unfortunately, I was unable to locate him there and didn't have a way to reach him.

I want to let him know how grateful I am for his help that day so I hope he reads this article. His name is Dean and I think his boat was named "Eco" ...something. If you do read this, please contact me at [email protected].

I feel that fate intervened for me that day and was once again reminded how kind the people of Bermuda are. I can't wait to come back again.

Lorraine Bull

Ancaster, Ontario, Canada