Back injury slowly healing for Mack Attack tourist

A tourist who broke her back aboard a Northland high speed tourist boat is expected to walk again but her recovery will be slow.
Whangarei farmer Cathy Cooke sustained a broken lower back on December 21 last year, when she was propelled out of her seat while she was on board Mack Attack. She was not wearing her seatbelt.
Her dad Bob Brown said his daughter was showing signs of progress, but still had a long way to go. She had been diagnosed with a compression fracture of the first lumbar joint and steel bars had been inserted on either side of the fracture. Ms Cooke is home but wheelchair-bound after being discharged from the spinal rehabilitation unit in Otara.
"The doctors are confident that she'll walk again, but we don't know how far, or if she'll be able to run," Mr Brown said.
"She can stand up between parallel bars, which is progress."
He wanted to ensure that steps were taken to prevent anyone else receiving similar injuries.
A spokeswoman for Mack Attack said the company had been exonerated because Ms Cooke admitted to not wearing her seatbelt. The vessel operated according to specific conditions, including that seatbelts be worn at all times, that voyages be no longer than 90 minutes, and that the vessel did not operate in dangerous conditions .
Maritime NZ's general manager of maritime services, Sharyn Forsyth, confirmed last week that the incident resulting in Ms Cooke's injury was under investigation. The general purpose of investigations of this nature was to determine whether there were any regulatory breaches or wider safety issues that may require further action.
Following preliminary inquiries, she said Mack Attack had been issued with a prohibition notice on January 12 due to concerns about the state of the vessel.
"At this time, MNZ also identified the vessel was not compliant with safe ship management [SSM] requirements."
Though the vessel is now back on the water, Ms Forsyth said MNZ was also investigating two separate incidents involving Fullers' Excitor III, on January 12 and March 22, in which passengers suffered serious back injuries.