THE HARBOR COLUMN:Drop anchor if failure occurs

Ahoy.

I predict it’s an excellent weekend to be on the water since the 8--foot swells and gale winds have left our area. The seas are flat and the swell heights are dropping at Point Conception. The seas should be less than 3-feet high, with double-digit intervals from the west until later Sunday. Then the seas might build to five feet with a mixed set from the west and south, with increasing winds. So, just keep an eye to the weather for any changes, but take note it will be foggy in the mornings due to the warm temperatures along the coast.

One of my major goals with this column is to increase awareness about the aquatic world, and my columns can include any water-related topic from my personal stories of a yacht delivery to educating you on how to be safe on the waterways to environmental issues, for example.

Sometimes I share with you boating or human mishaps that occur on the waterways, and, of course, I am not shy to give my professional opinion on why it happened. Most of the mishaps are the fault of Goofy-goes-sailing boaters, but sometimes the pros make mistakes, too.

The latter was true in the dark, wee hours last Friday morning when a commercial fishing vessel ran up on the beach at 35th Street in Newport Beach. Luckily, the steel-hulled boat missed the rock groins and ran aground on the soft sand.

The question remains: How did the captain of the commercial fishing vessel named the Emerald Sea run aground, especially with all the advanced electronic navigation equipment? We must consider that these commercial fishing boats at times operate very close to shore and in the middle of the night.

Those who read my column know that I am a delivery and training captain. During many deliveries, we run 24 hours for what can be days — stopping only for fuel. I find that running during darkness presents an array of extra challenges, from visibility to falling asleep at the helm.

Did a rogue wave hit the boat, pushing it onto a sandbar, as reported? Possibly, but the way the vessel was laying on the beach makes that explanation seem improbable. The boat would have to be very close to shore to hit bottom, and whoever was at the helm should have been watching the GPS chart plotter, the radar and the depth. Unless the helmsman dozed off, then this appears to be the operator misjudging the distance to the beach. Everyone makes mistakes — only commercial skippers are held to a much higher standard. At least no one was injured.

The tip of the week is for all boaters to check their anchor and ground tackle. Let me give you a huge tip: Drop your anchor if you have an engine failure, steering failure or any type of malfunction. This procedure can be used inside the harbor as well, if all of a sudden your vessel drifts out of your control because of some malfunction. Simply drop your anchor before you plow into the moorings or docks.

Plan, practice and be prepared before it happens to you.

Tune in to “Capt. Mike Whitehead’s Boathouse Radio Show” from noon to 1 p.m. Saturdays on KLAA-AM (830). So, join me with my motley crew, Chandler Bell and Eric Hovland, as we talk about “all things boating.”