At SeaHelp, the leading organization, which since 2005 provides roadside assistance and other services for the European recreational boating on the water, it goes blow by blow: with Rab is now on the island of the same name another new SeaHelp base for operations around Rab, Kvarner and the Velebitski Channel ready.
No sooner had SeaHelp announced that from July 1, 2022, a new base is ready in Marina Veruda in Pula near the southern tip of the Istrian peninsula with an eight-meter response boat, the operations center of Europe’s largest on-water roadside assistance service is already planning to open another base in ACI Marina Rab with an new response boat from Axopar.
“Due to the increasing number of missions and an even faster response time for effective assistance, it is inevitable for us to set up an additional new base of our own on the island of Rab”, says SeaHelp managing director Wolfgang Dauser. Around the island of Rab there would be many shoals and dangerous cliffs, on which repeatedly sports skippers have run aground, says Dauser.
Until now, Rab had been served from Punat, which is about 25 nautical miles to the north, or the base in Losinj, which is about 30 nautical miles away to the south, he said.
The new operational boat for the Rab base is a fast, fully equipped Axopar 28 with 400 hp
The new operational boat is the 28-foot (9.18-meter) long and up to 2.95-meter wide multipurpose sports cruiser Axopar 28 from the Finnish shipyard of the same name, which is a multifunctional boat with a modern, dynamic style combined with an agile and fuel-efficient hull.
Converted for its new purpose, the boat, almost ten meters long, features excellent seaworthiness even in rough seas and is equipped with two powerful outboards, each producing 200 hp, in addition to all the main life-saving equipment and a comfortable cabin.
The new SeaHelp base is located in the ACI Marina of the town of Rab, an ideal starting point for operations
The ACI Marina Rab was chosen as the SeaHelp base because the marina has a “favorable starting location”, and “a fuel station and a crane are available in the immediate vicinity”, says SeaHelp managing director Wolfgang Dauser.
For potential relief and rescue operations, however, it is “irrelevant whether the rescue boat is located in the center, north or south of the island of Rab”, because “every remote corner and every bay”can now be reached “within just 15 minutes with the over 40 knots (74 km/h) fast, new rescue boat from Axopar safely”.
The island of Rab in the north of the Croatian Adriatic is extremely popular with recreational boat skippers
The island of Rab, located in Kvarner in the north of the Croatian Adriatic coast, is a very popular nautical area among pleasure boat owners, especially among trailer boat skippers, the area is extremely popular – along with the island of Murter, Istria and the region around Sibenik.
Countless apartments with their own moorings, many small marinas and harbors as well as many mooring buoys at hotels and campsites line the coast around the island. The historic old town of Rab is also popular with yacht owners, who like to stay here for a night or two.
Many skippers overestimate themselves and their boat – and quickly get into a dangerous situation
“The vast majority of SeaHelp missions involve sport boats with power supply problems,” says SeaHelp operations manager Marko Orlic. Many sport skippers do not have separate batteries for the engine and the supply on board, or the skippers have incorrectly set the main switches. Not closing contacts in the E-cables or a defective emergency stop (Quick stop) are likewise frequent causes for breakdowns at sea apart from engine damage.
According to the experienced SeaHelp operations manager, the “careless handling of the situation at sea is an important issue” with regard to recreational boat skippers; they often overestimate themselves and then quickly get into a dangerous situation. Especially in the summer months, the region around Rab is known for fast-moving thunderstorms; and in the case of bora, the Baska jet, which is located in the north of the island, can quickly become dangerous.
The coastline covered by the new base on Rab is about 104 kilometers, plus several offshore islands
Also the fall winds from the Velebit mountains, which are over 1,000 meters high, are often underestimated, says Marko Orlic, then the accompaniment by a Sea-Help operation team is a great relief, for example, if you want to return to the port or marina with a sports boat under six meters long.
The length of the coastline covered by the new base is about 104 kilometers; offshore are the islands of Goli, Grgur, Dolin, Pag, Laganj and Dolfin, among others; there are about 3,100 hotel beds and about 21,000 apartment beds on Rab; together with the numerous camping guests, there are about 2.2 million overnight stays per year.
An above-average number of water sports enthusiasts already use the practical SeaHelp app in the area around Rab and purchase an annual vignette via SeaHelp.
24h EMERGENCY CALL EUROPE: 00800 112 00 112 (Alternative: 0043 50 43 112)
In an emergency, SeaHelp’s response boat can be called from Rab by dialing 00800 112 00 112 or 0043 50 43 112, or by using the handy SeaHelp app.
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