A family-of-five with “no sailing experience” who traded life on land for the open sea have been slammed online after sharing terrifying footage of their first proper storm.
Retired firefighter Bengt Staring, 39, lives aboard a sailboat with his wife Fiona, 38, and their children Gilbert, 18, Lochlan, 13, and Arabelle, nine.
The dramatic clip, shared last month, shows the family in life vests as the boat takes a battering in “rough waves” with lightning in the sky.
READ MORE: Firefighters stunned to find charging ADULT TOY at scene of house fire
The video has racked up more than 12,000 likes, with many viewers shocked that the kids were on board.
Bengt, a licensed contractor, says the storm caught them completely off guard.
“We’ve encountered rough sea conditions before, five to six foot choppy waves for hours on end [but this was our first proper storm],” he told Need To Know.
“The first five minutes of the storm were incredibly frightening.
“We did not know what was happening as it was not shown on any charts.
“After we realised that we were safe, the anchor was holding, and we didn’t have to worry about boats dragging into us, we were really able to appreciate the beauty of Mother Nature.”
Social media users have been quick to criticise the parents.
One person said: “Who was the Einstein that thought this would be a good idea? Especially with kids?”
Someone else added: “Man why put the family at risk living on water? Life can be dangerous any where [sic] but why purposely make it more so.”
Sandipani said: “This unnecessary [sic] and not at all a good idea to bring kids in this situation.”
Billy added: “No way on gods [sic] cruel earth would I let my kids get on that twig.”
Tim said: “Damn I just had a panic attack.”
Another person said: “Nope nope absolutely not. I would be scared as hell and sea sick [sic] at the same time.”
But others said they were in awe of the family’s adventurous lifestyle.
One person said: “This looks like a scene straight out of Outer Banks! It looks so intense! Were you okay with those rough waves?”
To which the family replied: “Yeah it was ok!”
Someone else said: “Crazy! Balls of steel you guys got.”
A third person added: “Wow! I’m glad y’all are safe! What an amazing life to live. I’m not water people but I think living an adventurous life on the water is preferable to living on land most places right now! keep safe and stay awesome!”
Another person, who leapt to the family’s defence, added: “For everybody hating on them because they chose to live their life on a sailboat and see the world and show their kids culture and all kinds of different things that your kids were stuck behind an iPad would never see [sic] or a lifestyle that you living in your safe, little bubble would never understand.
“Parents are giving their kids something that can never be bought, and that will be remembered for the rest of their life just because they’re present in their child’s life. Don’t hate on them as you sit there and let the Internet and TikTok, Instagram and Facebook raise your child.”
Bengt, who was born in Sweden and recently became a US citizen, says his family first got hooked on the idea of life at sea through YouTube sailing channels.
The family began their journey in January and have since sailed to Bimini, the Berry Islands, Nassau, the Exumas, the Abacos and Eleuthera, before heading over to West End on Grand Bahama.
Bengt said: “Every day starts with breakfast and schooling, just to get that out of the way.
“Homeschooling takes a fraction of the time that regular public schooling does.
“As the Captain, I run through safety checks, make sure the boat is in order, that there are no emergencies, and check the weather to see what to expect that day and the next couple of days.
“The biggest challenges are the limited space on board, and when there is bad weather you end up stuck inside and have to find creative ways to keep yourself entertained.”
He insists life at sea has brought the family closer together.
The dad added: “There’s obviously the freedom.
“The time together is invaluable; these kids grow quicker than you can ever imagine.
“And of course, the daily adventure is indescribable.”
READ MORE: Missing influencer 23 was ‘killed on day she disappeared’ as cops halt search
