KEY POINTS:
A young Navy sailor died and three others were injured after a night ashore turned to tragedy early yesterday.
The four young Navy personnel were only a few hundred metres from the naval base in Devonport when the crash occurred. Alcohol is believed to be a factor.
Jasmine Annie Bastion, 22, an able chef based at Devonport, died about 4pm after surgery failed to save her life. She worked in the wardroom galley and had been in the Navy for 26 months.
Lieutenant Commander Barbara Cassin said Navy police were working alongside the civil inquiry into the accident. "It's a shock for everybody. We take these matters very, very seriously."
Investigators are probing what role alcohol played in the accident, which led to Bastion and three men being cut from a white Mazda RX7.
The North Shore Serious Crash Unit was yesterday conducting inquiries.
Constable Blair Atkinson said the car appeared to be heading towards Devonport from the naval base when it lost control on a left-hand corner and collided with a concrete fence.
The car's three other occupants were taken to hospital; the owner of the car was out yesterday afternoon.
Cassin said everyone at the base was devastated - a critical incident stress team had been deployed to provide support to the ratings, their families, and Devonport residents who saw the crash.
