It'd bet pretty heavily that most prop related injuries happen within swimming distance of a dock, if not closer.
I don't even let people stand up when docking, and brief my passengers as such. Last year had some random "friendly helper" grab the arch on our 270 when my kids didn't throw him a rope at the Center Harbor town docks (no need to toss lines, it's easy enough to snug up and let the kids tie off) Despite being told to let go, he held on to "help because it was tough parking a big boat (27', not eactly docking the QEII). Pulled him into one of the posts pivioting the boat and nearly pulling him into the water. I was pissed. shut the motor off as soon as it looked like he was going in - even though we were only halfway in the slip. The less polite side of me wanted to toss it in reverse and make sure he remembered going swimming the last time he grabbed a moving boat. It's not that I was moving fast, just that he was trying to stop 8000lbs without solid footing.
Moving boat regardless of the intent, are dangerous, unfortunately people forget pretty quickly because they get away with it so often. At work we call it normalization of deviance. Its invasive, and deadly.
|