The Skippers of Alliance and Ceilidh Tell Their Rescue Story

Mary Martin and Eric Irwin of Alliance tell the story of the rescue of their crew by Jim Coggeshall's Ceilidh after they abandon shipped half way to Bermuda during on June 23, 2024.
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[@leemonade6943]

Too bad for Alliance, but what a beautiful human story of generosity and sharing. Thank you Ceilidh.

[@jillnosach6898]

Mary and Eric, So glad to learn you and your crew are safe. Your outstanding preparation, training, calmness, and clear lines of authority and communication made all the difference. Looking forward to seeing you soon.

[@kevinmooney5436]

Well done Eric and Mary! Great job bringing everyone home - sorry to hear about Alliance but look forward to hearing about your future adventures as I’m sure you’ll return to sea.

[@stude292]

Very, very impressive dialog provided by you both during this presentation. A reasonable conclusion is that the damage was irreparable and the loss of the boat was thus inevitable despite what sounds like optimal attempts at damage control. Then, the decisive actions to prepare both for a safe personnel transfer to the raft and for the rendezvous, involving many moving parts, indicate a clear and reliable chain of command. I recommend including this experience as part of safety at sea trainings and stress the importance of the pre-race/in-situ preparations and the critical roles players. A demonstration of true leadership and collaboration. Well done, and so glad you are all safe and and unhurt. A true success.

[@elsiesmith1771]

So so sorry to hear about the loss of Alliance. But really great to hear that the sailing community (as always) will go out of their way to help one another!

[@rdembow]

Everyone came out safe! Great coordination and preparation!

[@AndrewWernick]

You didn’t count on this happening but you were so well prepared. Thanks for sharing your story.

[@seanrhone5306]

The opportunity wasn’t lost, it was enhanced!

[@WojciechP915]

I think I am going to start "over-provisioning" as well.

[@keithmoorechannel]

Can even happen to ex-Navy guy. At least that helped them get their crew prepared.

[@markm417]

Glad they're OK, sounds like they did the right things, and anything can happen to any kind of boat. But it does surprise me that people take spade rudder boats offshore and seem continually surprised when a collision has grave consequences.

[@baxternauset]

Note to myself. Nine plus nine does not equal sixteen. We actually had seven crew on Ceilidh before the rescue - so the total number was correct. That said I NEVER want to race 350 miles with sixteen people on a 40 boat again!!!

[@keithmoorechannel]

Cargo containers are the new icebergs. So dangerous as they ‘float’ just under the surface many times.