Tragedy in St Maarten

[mickey89]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-40591757

I hope the authorities take action to avoid a re-occurance..........?

[Slugsta]

What a terrible thing to happen! My thoughts are with the loved ones of the person who lost her life.

 

This does demonstrate how stupidly people can behave (especially on holiday and, possibly, exacerbated by alcohol) despite warning signs. I think the general consensus is that people need to be physically prevented from putting themselves into danger rather than just warned about it. I know that our local airport has blast fences in place, I wonder if they were fitted on St Maarten?

[dkjretired]

www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-40591757

I hope the authorities take action to avoid a re-occurance..........?

 

I hate to say it but this was inevitable. This situation has been on TV worldwide including many of the Discovery channels. The bar at that location even lists the planes coming in and taking off so patrons can do whatever they wish.

[hcat]

Very tragic...

Upsetting that adults take their children to see the planes close up perhaps oblivious to the dangers!

[ChucktownSteve]

Maybe they should change the numerous warning signs to say, "If you hold on to this fence you could be killed." Do you think that would stop people from doing it?

[GordonJasmine]

Probably not. People will be people after all.

[MixerDave]

Maybe they should change the numerous warning signs to say, "If you hold on to this fence you could be killed." Do you think that would stop people from doing it?

 

I believe the sign already says you could be killed

[RickT]

Maybe they should change the numerous warning signs to say, "If you hold on to this fence you could be killed." Do you think that would stop people from doing it?

Nope. There is a tourist area in Nova Scotia (Peggy's Cove) that has signs that read "Injury and death have rewarded careless sight-seers here...." Doesn't stop a few tourists a year but being washed into the ocrean with tragic consequences.

 

Unfortunately if something doesn't look that dangerous, people will ignore these signs. Guess it's all part of Darwin's Theory of Evolution.

[curtdesilets]

Everybody out of the Gene Pool. Darwin Award coming.

[Guindalf]

Whilst I have sympathy for the family, this is a tragic, but avoidable situation. There are many, many warnings about the dangers of being in direct line of the jet engines. It's not like this person was dragged off while sunbathing!

 

It has to be put in perspective. This is one incident in years of it being an 'attraction'. Millions of cruise passengers and island visitors make the pilgrimage to Maho Beach to watch the planes take off and land and this is one of very few incidents of this type and certainly the only death I've heard of in about 16 years of cruising.

 

Rather than demanding that something is done to protect one dumb person in millions, peoples' energy should be put into stopping those that text while driving, which has a MUCH higher mortality rate!

[OCA REP]

I think the general consensus is that people need to be physically prevented from putting themselves into danger rather than just warned about it.

From where is this general consensus coming?

 

We are already 'nanny-stated' to the extreme. It is unfortunate that this lady died from her own actions, but I have been there and the signage is very clear. We were able to enjoy take offs and landings from either side of the small beach without putting our lives in danger. As an aviation enthusiast, I do not want to see any type of wall built there that will restrict the view!

[jb008]

Whilst I have sympathy for the family, this is a tragic, but avoidable situation. There are many, many warnings about the dangers of being in direct line of the jet engines. It's not like this person was dragged off while sunbathing!

 

It has to be put in perspective. This is one incident in years of it being an 'attraction'. Millions of cruise passengers and island visitors make the pilgrimage to Maho Beach to watch the planes take off and land and this is one of very few incidents of this type and certainly the only death I've heard of in about 16 years of cruising.

 

Rather than demanding that something is done to protect one dumb person in millions, peoples' energy should be put into stopping those that text while driving, which has a MUCH higher mortality rate!

 

One fool will ruin it for the rest of us. Sad to hear, but I'm left shaking my head that she did such a stupid thing in the first place. As was mentioned above, maybe her family will get a Darwin Award as a consolation prize.

[WpgCruise]

You can't legislate common sense.

 

The danger signs at that location are prominently displayed, and the consequences clearly detailed.

 

If people choose to put themselves into a dangerous situation which has been warned against, they accept the results.

 

A terrible outcome indeed for the lady and her family, but completely avoidable if the warnings had been heeded.

[dkjretired]

One fool will ruin it for the rest of us. Sad to hear, but I'm left shaking my head that she did such a stupid thing in the first place. As was mentioned above, maybe her family will get a Darwin Award as a consolation prize.

 

Yes it is a stupid thing to do but a lot of people do it and are probably still doing. Real problems come when the 747s take off. Look at the internet, this woman was just doing what hundreds of people do. Don't want people to think this is a one time occurrence, as I stated earlier this was inevitable.

[evandbob]

I hate to say it but this was inevitable. This situation has been on TV worldwide including many of the Discovery channels. The bar at that location even lists the planes coming in and taking off so patrons can do whatever they wish.

 

 

If people view the planes from the bar area, they are not in the direct path of the jet blast. I believe this tragedy has happened before, and most likely will happen again, unless the area directly behind the take off strip is securely cordoned off.

[frisbeewife]

When my family and I were visiting Maho Beach a couple of years ago my 8 year old grandson got me to buy him a Tshirt with an image of the warning sign on it ("DANGER!" in big red letters followed by a detailed description of why you shouldn't stand there). He practically wore it out before he outgrew it. So even an 8 year old recognized how dangerous it was......

 

I truly feel bad for the family of the victim and I'm sure they wish they had heeded the warnings. This will haunt them for the rest of their lives.

[Hlitner]

Some of us have been warning folks (here on CC and elsewhere) for years...that its very dangerous to play the Maho beach game. Having somebody killed by the jet blast is not common...but it is always a risk. But an even more common problem is getting hit by a pebble (or other debris) that is akin to be struck by a bullet. A loose pebble anywhere behind a jet (this can be on the runway or anywhere from the runway to the beach (which includes a road) becomes a real danger. It can literally take your eye out, or severely damage nearly any other part of your body. Yet lots of tourists continue to put themselves and their loved one's in harms way....and are happy rolling the dice. Not smart.

 

We also think that the St Maarten authorities share the blame. Their half hearted attempts to stop the gate hanging and standing practices...are not taken seriously by anyone (including the police). There is a very simple solution to the problem, used at airports around the world. The airport need to erect a Jet Blast Deflector at the end of the runway (close to the airport fence. This is a pretty low cost solution that has existed for years...and the fact that it has not been done just demonstrates that the authorities do not give a hoot about potential injuries (or death).

 

Hank

[satbeachbill]

I think the blast deflector is a good idea. But here, I think it would be in the way of jets landing. They come in awfully low. No one is to blame here. People do stupid stuff all the time.

[OCruisers]

Sad to hear about this.

Those planes do fly in VERY low.

Best to watch from a bar overlooking rather than on the beach.

[fielddreamer]

The girl hit that 3 ft. high wall across the road. That wall has been a real danger for many years and I am surprised that this is the first death with that wall across the road. Not a smart thing to hang onto that frence in the first place.

[BeagleOne]

I think the blast deflector is a good idea. But here, I think it would be in the way of jets landing. They come in awfully low. No one is to blame here. People do stupid stuff all the time.

 

No, it wouldn't get in the way of the landing aircraft. There is plenty of space between the fence and the end of the runway to put a deflector. And someone is to blame here, the woman who died. There are signs warning of the hazards, and she was an adult. She chose to risk her life by hanging onto the fence, knowing she could have been blown onto the road, into the wall, or onto the rocks, and she did it anyway, and sadly, she is now dead.

[zqvol]

Sorry but I don't call this a tragedy. It was someone foolishly placing themselves in harms way and paying the ultimate price.

 

Having said that it is a shame that it happened and everyone should heed the warnings posted in the area to avoid the jets. If you think about it, two of those engines provide enough thrust to lift those planes into the air, what do you think they will do to a human that weighs less than a tire on one of the planes. Be smart people!

 

Parents, keep in mind that your children have no business going to this area, in the US it would be tantamount to child endangerment.

[zqvol]

Sad to hear about this.

Those planes do fly in VERY low.

Best to watch from a bar overlooking rather than on the beach.

 

What do you expect them to do? Fly in high to land, or maybe fly high before they take off?

 

You are right though, if you want to watch the planes make sure that you are well to the side of the runway. Life is too precious to waste on something so trivial.

[Misplaced Texan]

Sad to hear about this.

Those planes do fly in VERY low.

Best to watch from a bar overlooking rather than on the beach.

 

The incident wasn't on landing. The woman was standing behind a jet engine at take-off thrust. That's just not very bright.

 

An aircraft landing would be at idle thrust would also be passing overhead rather than being in a position where the thrust was being delivered directly onto a person.

 

As for the idea of a jet blast deflector, I'm not familiar with any single-runway airports that have one. I'm no expert, but you would have to think it would change the landing profile in some way to add an additional obstruction and therefore it might not be possible to do.

[Langoustine]

One problem (I've been a licensed pilot since 1963, though unlike Harrison Ford I no longer fly except as a passenger) is that you don't want to put a concrete barrier at the end of the runway that a plane landing short could impact, since that would very likely cause a major disaster. There are also probably EU regulations prohibiting that kind of obstruction; as I recall, the FAA certainly had some. A hydraulic blast barrier (down for landings, up for takeoffs) would probably be ideal. The reason aircraft come in so low there is that it's a very short runway; likewise. they rev the engines up as high as they can before releasing the brakes, and that's what killed this poor woman.

Edited July 13, 2017 by Langoustine