Both sides to blame in sea death, says report

Poor watchkeeping practices and a lack of necessary skills led to a fatal collision between a yacht and a barge on a busy Hauraki Gulf shipping lane, says the Maritime Safety Authority.

In a report issued yesterday, the MSA found that skipper Don Morton, aged 76, was killed when his yacht Toolka T sank after striking a submerged towline and being run over by a 1500-tonne barge towed by the tug Wainui on November 16 last year.

The Director of Maritime Safety, Russell Kilvington, said: "The MSA's accident investigation details poor watchkeeping practices on both the tug and the yacht and reveals an alarming lack of knowledge of the collision rules at sea."

Mr Morton was asleep below deck at the time of the collision.

His partner and two others on board escaped shaken but unhurt.

Mr Morton and his companions were returning to Whangaparaoa after four months cruising around the Fiji and Vanuatu Islands.

Mr Kilvington said the person steering Toolka T did not recognise the lights displayed on Wainui as those of a vessel towing another vessel.

"She did not look for a towed vessel when she altered course and crossed behind the tug.

"She did not know how to plot the course and speed of another vessel using radar and was not familiar with the collision rules.

"Also she was short-sighted and not wearing corrective lenses."

Mr Kilvington said the watchkeepers aboard Wainui contributed to the collision by not navigating in accordance with maritime safety rules, not contacting Toolka T by radio to establish its course, and not sounding a whistle in warning or turning the tug's spotlight on the barge.

Mr Kilvington also said that when faced with the emergency, the watchkeeper aboard Wainui did not adjust the tug's engine controls, which could have allowed the towline to submerge further.

The MSA's report recommended that the watchkeepers aboard both vessels receive "severe censure".

The owner of Wainui was instructed to ensure all watchkeepers were adequately trained and the report recommended that the Toolka T's watchkeeper obtain a boatmaster qualification - "the minimum appropriate qualification for anyone undertaking a coastal or deep sea voyage".

Mr Kilvington said: "The sea can be unforgiving of mistakes and in this case one man tragically lost his life, not because of bad luck but because of lack of knowledge".

- NZPA

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