I'm sure we'll never know what caused her to sink. If it was just the drain plug then running the boat should have caused the water to be sucked out the drain hole. Add the bilge pump and she should have stayed dry. So whatever it was, I don't think it was the drain plug hole.
(I'm betting it was a thru hull fitting that he missed, but that's just a guess)
Makes a STRONG case for having at least one EPIRB on board. Flares, radio etc are all useless if no one's around to see or hear it.
Whenever I take my boat out at the start of the season I always go upstream in a river by my house for a sea trial. (That way even if the engine quits I can drift back to the dock). Once I know everything is working as it should and she's watertight then it's time for passengers.
__________________
1987 V20 w/1987 150HP Yamaha on a Shoreland'r Trailer
1978 16.5 Airslot w/1996 120HP Force on a Four Winns trailer
1996 V21 w/1993 200HP Mercury on a Shoreline Trailer
All towed by a 5.7L Hemi Durango.
If God didn't have a purpose for us we wouldn't be here, so
Live simply, Love generously, Care deeply, Speak kindly.
(Leave the rest to God)
Silence, in the face of evil, is itself evil. Not to speak is to speak, not to act is to act. God will not hold us guiltless.