Halifax-based tall ship, Liana’s Ransom is now resting and waiting for repairs in Eliot, Maine.
“To move it anywhere in its current state would be extremely challenging,” says crew member Max Deighton Winter. “So, it will have to be repaired in Maine.”
The 26-metre, steel-hulled vessel ran into trouble Monday morning when it experienced equipment failure and rough seas off the coast of Massachusetts.
Captain Ryan Tilley and his crew all had to jump to safety into a U.S. Coast Guard motor lifeboat.
“Personally, very devastating,” says Tilley. “But when it came time to make the decision to abandon ship, I made it because I felt it wasn’t safe for the crew to stay there anymore.”
Crew member Luke Arbuckle didn’t make the jump.
“On my second attempt, I was exhausted,” says Arbuckle. “And I made my jump and cracked my forehead on the boat, and landed in the water.”
While the biggest injury was a minor concussion, Captain Tilley says the experience was so harrowing, some crew members say they won’t sail again.
He also says they wouldn’t be on dry land if it wasn’t for the U.S. Coast Guard.
“We all jumped off of the boat, the lifeguards were fantastic,” says Deighton Winter. “They grasped us once we got onto that boat and didn’t let go. It was warming, actually, a very nice hug. So, good job, whoever hugged me.”
Along with inspecting the damage to Liana’s Ransom, crew members will grab their belongings from the ship and head back home, most likely by air.
