carlmeurling
08-10-2005, 05:20 PM
A very serious kitesurfing accident involving a a close friend of mine happened on July 16 outside Halmstad, a city on the west coast of Sweden.
(http://www.mapquest.com/maps/map.adp?formtype=address&searchtype=address&country=SE&addtohistory=&address=&city=halmstad)
My friend spontaneously signed up for a beginner's kitesurfing course and was in the water testing his gear for the first time with an instructor when a burst of very strong wind, possibly a tornado or a downburst, lifted him and two other course participants up in the air. They flew uncontrollably in a revolving motion across the beach at high speed before crashlanding. Although the sandy shallow beach (which is one of the most popular for Sweden's windsurfers) was full of people, there are few witnesses since everything went lightning fast.
The two other participants suffered multiple skeleton fractures but were able to leave hospital fairly quickly and will recover. My friend is in worse condition. His pelvis is broken, both lungs are punctured due to multiple rib fractures, and worst of all, his spinal cord is broken (3 vertebrae are crushed). He is paralyzed from the chest down and will never walk again. The only relief is that he did not suffer head injuries, presumably because he wore a helmet. He is still in intensive care, almost a month after the accident.
I have never tried kitesurfing in my life, and know nothing about the sport apart from what I have read on the internet. At this point, it would be helpful to hear from more experienced folks out there how this accident could happen and understand what the kitesurfing community is doing to prevent it from happening again.
Most of the below questions concern the responsibility of the organizers of the kitesurfing course. To an outsider, it is infuriating that such a horrendous accident can happen when trying what seems to be a new fun sport under the auspices of someone who presumably has more experience. Perhaps there are legitimate answers.
- Is there any possibility for organizers of kitesurfing to foresee downbursts/tornados when planning for kitesurfing? (Sweden has a very calm climate but the west coast experiences tornados from time to time). If so, when should a kitesurfing course be canceled? What words of precaution should be given to the participants by the instructors?
- What release system mechanisms for "unhooking" from the kite should be used when arranging beginners' kitesurfing courses? I understand there are several release systems? Maybe even the most recent gear does not help when abnormally strong winds strike unexpectedly?
- Is the community (roughly) aware of how many serious accidents involving tornadoes/downbursts happen this year, and in past years? Reading this forum, there seem to have been many such incidents and several people killed this year alone? What has been done to mitigate these types of accidents?
- Is there any "quality certificate" in kitesurfing such as PADI in diving, or is any organizer free to plan the course as he or she likes? Is there any compulsory or recommended training that kitesurfing instructors should go through before teaching others?
My understanding from having followed this case is that the instructors were completely unaware that this type of accident existed and thus did not check the weather forecast, used old-fashioned equipment which was difficult to release (especially for beginners), and gave little precaution about the dangers to the course participants. You might also want to know that the kitesurfing club reportedly is the largest in Sweden.
I guess the summary question is what reasonably can be demanded from kitesurfing instructors, and where their responsibility for pupils begins and ends.
Thanks a lot in advance for answering, and I hope you all take care of yourselves in the water.
(http://www.mapquest.com/maps/map.adp?formtype=address&searchtype=address&country=SE&addtohistory=&address=&city=halmstad)
My friend spontaneously signed up for a beginner's kitesurfing course and was in the water testing his gear for the first time with an instructor when a burst of very strong wind, possibly a tornado or a downburst, lifted him and two other course participants up in the air. They flew uncontrollably in a revolving motion across the beach at high speed before crashlanding. Although the sandy shallow beach (which is one of the most popular for Sweden's windsurfers) was full of people, there are few witnesses since everything went lightning fast.
The two other participants suffered multiple skeleton fractures but were able to leave hospital fairly quickly and will recover. My friend is in worse condition. His pelvis is broken, both lungs are punctured due to multiple rib fractures, and worst of all, his spinal cord is broken (3 vertebrae are crushed). He is paralyzed from the chest down and will never walk again. The only relief is that he did not suffer head injuries, presumably because he wore a helmet. He is still in intensive care, almost a month after the accident.
I have never tried kitesurfing in my life, and know nothing about the sport apart from what I have read on the internet. At this point, it would be helpful to hear from more experienced folks out there how this accident could happen and understand what the kitesurfing community is doing to prevent it from happening again.
Most of the below questions concern the responsibility of the organizers of the kitesurfing course. To an outsider, it is infuriating that such a horrendous accident can happen when trying what seems to be a new fun sport under the auspices of someone who presumably has more experience. Perhaps there are legitimate answers.
- Is there any possibility for organizers of kitesurfing to foresee downbursts/tornados when planning for kitesurfing? (Sweden has a very calm climate but the west coast experiences tornados from time to time). If so, when should a kitesurfing course be canceled? What words of precaution should be given to the participants by the instructors?
- What release system mechanisms for "unhooking" from the kite should be used when arranging beginners' kitesurfing courses? I understand there are several release systems? Maybe even the most recent gear does not help when abnormally strong winds strike unexpectedly?
- Is the community (roughly) aware of how many serious accidents involving tornadoes/downbursts happen this year, and in past years? Reading this forum, there seem to have been many such incidents and several people killed this year alone? What has been done to mitigate these types of accidents?
- Is there any "quality certificate" in kitesurfing such as PADI in diving, or is any organizer free to plan the course as he or she likes? Is there any compulsory or recommended training that kitesurfing instructors should go through before teaching others?
My understanding from having followed this case is that the instructors were completely unaware that this type of accident existed and thus did not check the weather forecast, used old-fashioned equipment which was difficult to release (especially for beginners), and gave little precaution about the dangers to the course participants. You might also want to know that the kitesurfing club reportedly is the largest in Sweden.
I guess the summary question is what reasonably can be demanded from kitesurfing instructors, and where their responsibility for pupils begins and ends.
Thanks a lot in advance for answering, and I hope you all take care of yourselves in the water.