The tragedy of the sinking of FV Jubilee: Canterbury trawler operators prosecuted under health and safety laws

Operators of a trawler that sank off the coast of Canterbury with the loss of the three fishermen on board today were ordered to pay surviving relatives more than $ 700,000.

The 90-ton, 16-meter fishing vessel Jubilee sank after sending a distress signal in the early hours of October 18, 2015.

The three highly experienced anglers on board – Jared Reese Husband, 47, from Timaru, Skipper Paul Russell Bennett, 35, from Motueka, and Terry Donald Booth, 55, also from the Nelson region – were lost at sea. .

Their bodies were later recovered by divers from the Royal New Zealand Navy 22 kilometers from the mouth of the Rakaia River.

Maritime New Zealand initiated legal action against the operators of the Jubilee, Ocean Fisheries Limited.

The Lyttelton-based company, of which Andrew Stark is CEO, previously pleaded guilty to one charge, established under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1992, of failing to take all practical steps to ensure that no contractor was injured while performing any work. contractor promised to do. The charge carries a maximum fine of $ 250,000.

At Christchurch District Court this afternoon, family members were in court and listened via an electronic link to Judge Tony Couch, who said he hoped today would end a long and stressful process.

In his reserved sentencing decision, Judge Couch awarded a total of $ 230,325.25 in economic loss compensation to the surviving family members.

Information about who received what was suppressed by the judge to avoid additional stress for them. There are 19 people who, in each case, lost a close relative.

Eleven surviving victims were additionally awarded $ 505,000 emotional damages.

The company also received a $ 46,000 fine, bringing the total fine to $ 781,325.25.

“The total penalty imposed must be proportional to the circumstances of the offender and the offender,” Judge Couch said.

“I was told that the insurance will cover the repair and I understand that the basis for the resolution reached earlier this year includes the Stark family’s commitment to comply with the fine.”

An investigation by the Transportation Accident Investigation Commission (TAIC) concluded that the sinking was likely caused by a hose that was left working, and that the men had been trapped inside the wheelhouse without any escape route.

The Herald previously revealed that all three crew members could have been sleeping immediately prior to the sinking, and if one of them had been on duty that night, they must have fallen asleep.

The FV Jubilee, designed and built by Lyttelton’s Stark Bros Limited and operated by Ocean Fisheries Ltd, another wholly owned Stark family company and launched in 2008, had been fishing in an area southwest of the Banks Peninsula for approximately two days after. setting sail from Lyttelton.

They had spent a day fishing near another Ocean Fisheries Limited boat, the Legacy.

Bennett, a father of three, contacted the Legacy skipper and told him that since the fishing was not good, he was heading towards the coast and looking for flatfish at night.

But shortly after midnight on October 18, 2015, Bennett changed his mind and said they were going to “park for the night”, drifting with the weather, with a southwest wind at 25-30 knots with little significant swell. , while rested. The Legacy continued fishing as it headed south.

At approximately 4.19 am, someone aboard the Jubilee attempted to reach the Legacy using the ship’s mobile phone, but the call was not answered.

A minute later, Bennett put out a distress call on the security radio channel and VHF call saying the Jubilee was taking in water and they were sinking.

The call was immediately answered by Akaroa Maritime Radio, which requested information on the number of people on board and what assistance was required.

Bennett reiterated the ship’s position, saying “now they get off and on the life raft.”

At 4.22am, Akaroa Maritime Radio issued an emergency relief call, answered immediately by the Legacy’s skipper, who thought it was the only ship in the area and was some 26 nautical miles (48 km) away.

It was dawn before the Legacy reached the position of aid. The large container ship Lica Maersk had already stopped to help.

The Legacy crew found an oil slick, some debris, and the Jubilee’s empty life raft, which had deployed on its own.

An extensive air and sea search failed to find any of the crew.

The Jubilee wreck was discovered on the seabed later that day.

Several days later, divers positively identified the wreck and the bodies of the three crew members were recovered from the wheelhouse.