Mayday on the York

While taking two couples from Richmond sailing in the afternoon on the York River, we heard a mayday emergency call. It was a motorboat taking on water. As other boats came to assist, we learned that the water had submerged the engine halfway and killed it. Eventually the York County fire boat came and boarded as four other boats backed off to give officials maneuvering room. The family was transported to the nearby Riverwalk Landing for safety.

Coincidentally a big rescue/fire situation was developing a mile away on shore. We could see two fire trucks and some smoke, but the smoke turned out to be a grill fire farther down the beach.

Back on the boat, Brittany Strimple and Jim Thompson talked about their jobs. She teaches kindergarten and he works for a web designer who focuses on restaurants and menus. They and Tiera and Jessica Barksdale were not looking forward to the disruption of a world bicycling race running nine days through Richmond with 1,000 cyclists participating and 500,000 people expected to show up.

“They’re closing my school on Wednesday,” Brittany said, “because our streets are part of the race course.” Jim added, “There’s a new restaurant that will open and close just for the race, only two weeks and then gone.” But why, I asked. “Because of 500,000 people here for two weeks, that’s why.”

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