KEVIN PYNE, of Lake Street, Dartmouth, writes:

A once long term ferryman friend of mine who probably would never have drowned if we had had a lifeboat here in the port at that time used to say 'If it moves in a graveyard then it will probably get noticed.'

For myself I have no qualms with regard to the lifeboat launching to assist anyone or anything at anytime nor do I want anyone involved in the service to feel that they should at anytime at the lifeboat house hesitate to consider who does what on their patch beforehand.

It is after all thoroughly good foul weather practice for a lot of fine strong fit willing and able young men and women.

If I have any issues at all its in the fact that it has taken a lot of folk by surprise that winters can be like this and that many well moored craft have taken a bashing because of vessels around them that are not moored up properly or are on bits of shoe lace instead of adequate winter mooring ropes and so then break lose.

There are yachts and boats all over the harbour moored on lines that even if the book says they will be ok aren't moored up so as to take a bit of wear or with enough slack to take a sudden gust. Or that they do not have nearly enough nice big fat fenders to protect them from getting a good bashing in a storm.

My sixteen foot Orkney coast liner is on mooring line in some cases twice as thick as a five ton yacht when six good blokes can and have lifted it clean out of the water for me .

It was still there when I looked and I hope it continues to be so and yet I still had to temporarily make good the ropes on the boat in front as I knew they would wear through and ping off in the recent various storms .

It beats me how probably the second most expensive asset in people lives does not warrant proper prudent protective expenditure.

Moreover no one can expect to leave a boat even if it has an agent without checking it over now and again. For example a cleat can tear off or come lose as so many boaters seem to want to enter the chrome zone and not consider the basics. Rails for example are to keep us inboard or for hanging fenders on but not for making fast on.

As for the harbour authority, from my soon to be fifty years of experience on this river, I do feel that they need a small powerful all around fender motor launch with a nice flat blunt bow and a forward cuddy to protect the never less than two crew adequately, so as to be able to be afloat day and night in winter should they need to in such conditions.

I also think that not only should insurance details be presented to the harbour authority but boaters should be made to show that they can tie a bowline a round turn and two half hitches and a rolling hitch either left or right and how to belay a rope to a cleat and even get a personnel citation from the Harbour master if they can splice a bit of rope as well!

Oh and could I have another mooring eye please Nick!