Thread: Rendering Aid Question

I had a similar situation happen to me a couple of weeks ago near the tail race of High Rock. I didn’t have a gas motor on my boat because it had blown the top end so my son and I thought my trolling motor would pull okay in the current. I was wrong and we were swept over the shoals. We went from one side of the river to the other trying to get back to the launch ramp. Meanwhile a guy was anchored up a short distance away and watched while we struggled grabbing on to overhanging trees, using a push pole and my trolling motor. After a hour and a half of struggling we finally got the boat back up through the shoals and he shook his head as we went by. It was all I could do to contain my anger and not say something. What makes it worse is my son looks at me and ask how he could just sit there and ignore us without helping. It’s bad when a young person recognizes what should have happened while an older adult sits by and does nothing. Guess I was raised different and to help folks in need. It is becoming a sad world and truly a different time we live in.


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A lot of people now days have no initiative to help anybody in distress,,,The deer in the headlight look.I will and I have gotten Myself involved with people in distress,,,It's our civic duty,to render aid.You can't be sued..If you are scared of a lawsuit,Stay the hell at home....Give AID WALK AWAY you don't have to tell anyone your name.

There is no reasonable expectation to help anyone, I.e. no law requiring you to help anyone.
There is a "Good Samaritan Law" that protects you from most things when rendering aid. There are both areas where these ideas are valid, people are usually willing to help, but most of the time they would rather steer clear until LEO or paramedics arrive. Being a boat crash, they may have felt the situation was dangerous, and shouldn't approach. I've helped a few people in the past few years, both medically and tows/mechanically.
I went to give someone some crickets after fishing a few years back, they had been fishing a spot for a while. Motored over to see if they wanted the crickets, and they were waiting for a tow. Had been waiting a hour for someone they knew to come get them. I hooked to them and towed them back to the house, no telling how long they would have set there.

That being said, Not everyone is comfortable with engaging other strangers, if I noticed a boat crash, I'd go make sure everything is ok, long as there are no flames. I usually keep a good first aid kit in my vehicles.

The bottom line is I am going to help. Whether it is towing people who are broken down or pulling people out of the water whose boat capsized (I have had to do this unfortunately). Fishermen and boaters should appeal to a higher standard. I will leave the litigation stuff to others. Funny thing is that any time I have needed help someone has always been right there to help. Ran out of gas (darn fuel gauge) in the ICW at 930pm on a cold and windy November night in the fall in 2018. Lo and behold someone just happened to be cruising by at that time and towed me 1/2 a mile to Snow's Cut ramp. That didn't just happen by coincidence. Do the right thing.

The notion that people did not help this guy on Norman is unthinkable to me.

Originally Posted by roach1

The bottom line is I am going to help. Whether it is towing people who are broken down or pulling people out of the water whose boat capsized (I have had to do this unfortunately). Fishermen and boaters should appeal to a higher standard. I will leave the litigation stuff to others. Funny thing is that any time I have needed help someone has always been right there to help. Ran out of gas (darn fuel gauge) in the ICW at 930pm on a cold and windy November night in the fall in 2018. Lo and behold someone just happened to be cruising by at that time and towed me 1/2 a mile to Snow's Cut ramp. That didn't just happen by coincidence. Do the right thing.

The notion that people did not help this guy on Norman is unthinkable to me.

Obviously you have never been in a situation that may end up deadly for both parties. First thing you should always do is assess the situation from a distance. There have been times that people blew up due to a gas leak, can't be any help to anyone if you are dead. Some times the best bet is to see if people are moving around fine from afar and call 911, if someone starts to act frantically then start to worry. Each situation is unique, and your best friends are your 5 senses. Sounds like the people on the lake watched from afar, and seen them moving around fine, and just waited.

Originally Posted by mattbowen61990

Obviously you have never been in a situation that may end up deadly for both parties. First thing you should always do is assess the situation from a distance. There have been times that people blew up due to a gas leak, can't be any help to anyone if you are dead. Some times the best bet is to see if people are moving around fine from afar and call 911, if someone starts to act frantically then start to worry. Each situation is unique, and your best friends are your 5 senses. Sounds like the people on the lake watched from afar, and seen them moving around fine, and just waited.

4 years in law enforcement as well as pulling 3 people out of the water (one didn't make it) in Carolina Beach Inlet on a hard falling tide when I was boating alone say otherwise. I just believe in doing right by my fellow man and to me it's worth a little risk. We categorically disagree so back to your soap box and your assessments.

I said this to master mechanic at work, he said yes when he took test to be a boat captain in N.C. that was in the book, anyone in distress , you are supposed to help.

I will always help someone in distress. I will not ever sit back and watch a situation unfold where I could help someone because I put my self first. I just wasn’t raised that way.Maybe that is the way today’s society looks at things. Glad to be part of the old school generation.


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