They had not a "watchmen"........... it certainly was the saddest day in my local harbor in my 50 years of life. Full circle coming around.
Captain charged with Manslaughter
- Thread starter Fishbones
- Start date
One_Leg
Ret. Comm. Diver Medic
- May 11, 2007
- 5,547
- 1,972
- Name
- Alan
- Boat
- 1967 Cobia Cuddy Cabin/Evinrude Looper
Were I awake, I think I would have smelled, cigs, bacon, reefer or plastic/wood burning.
My recollection is that the fire started from a bunch of lithium batteries all plugged into the same outlets, dive lights and camera batteries. Etc...
Maybe I'm wrong here, but I would have a hard time making a judgement if that is true. If it was a galley fire that would be clearly different.
Prayers for the victims and their families.
Maybe I'm wrong here, but I would have a hard time making a judgement if that is true. If it was a galley fire that would be clearly different.
Prayers for the victims and their families.
He should tell the Judge how much he makes as a skipper for All the hrs he puts in, Maybe the Judge will feel sorry for him and give him probation, 67 Years old and they want to throw the book at him, If he has a clean track record and no other C.G violations on his record, They should take that into account.
It never ceases to amaze me how many BD Stans remain in denial about the culpability of this captain for the needless death and suffering of 34 people who were burned alive while under his care.
He is going to prison for the rest of his life. That is an unequivocal message to the entire industry. If your job is the safe transport of passengers at sea, which it is, that job had better be taken seriously If you want to remain a free man.
It is not a defense that the vessel was inspected and passed. The sole responsibility for the seaworthiness of the vessel is on the owner and captain. The manning of the vessel is as critical to its seaworthiness as the soundness of its hull.
Sport boat captains who fall asleep while on watch will now risk going to prison if someone is killed. That’s not a bad thing.
He is going to prison for the rest of his life. That is an unequivocal message to the entire industry. If your job is the safe transport of passengers at sea, which it is, that job had better be taken seriously If you want to remain a free man.
It is not a defense that the vessel was inspected and passed. The sole responsibility for the seaworthiness of the vessel is on the owner and captain. The manning of the vessel is as critical to its seaworthiness as the soundness of its hull.
Sport boat captains who fall asleep while on watch will now risk going to prison if someone is killed. That’s not a bad thing.
All of those factors are taken into account during sentencing. They are not a defense to the charges themselves.
Anyone who does a night watch on anchor that doesn’t include walking in and out of the galley, where you would observe fire, walking the deck, where you would smell smoke, opening the hatch to inspect the bilges, and looking Into the engine room to inspect the genie, among other things, isn’t doing a proper watch.
Looking out the wheelhouse window for lights and flotsam isn’t much of a watch.
As much as it pains me to agree with Larmo I have to. It's the Captains boat and his job AND responsibility to make sure the crew is trained and all safety precautions followed which included a night watch. He failed on all counts an people died on his watch because of it.
If nothing else the only good that comes from this is maybe industry standards improve on all counts.
My Thoughts and Prayers are with the victims and their families. They deserved much better
If nothing else the only good that comes from this is maybe industry standards improve on all counts.
My Thoughts and Prayers are with the victims and their families. They deserved much better
I personally disagree that a night watchman would have prevented this, although my understanding is they didn’t have one and will likely pay for it with jail time and heavy payouts. A night watchman has a very specific list of things to do, and it includes all of the things Larmo mentioned. It’s very possible he could have made his round through the galley and after his pass a lithium battery exploded. With multiple batteries plugged into each outlet, as was surmised, and depending on location in regards to the stairway, a devastating fire could have happened too fast to save those downstairs.
I do know that all of the rest of the boats on the coast are very aware of what happened and are taking it serious. The Mission Belle skipper was saying how wooden hulls have had their insurance significantly increased. The long range boats have definitely made known the escape hatches from below, and left them accessible. They also strongly request you don’t leave your devices plugged in where they’re not under direct observation. Tough and sorry lesson for everyone.
I do know that all of the rest of the boats on the coast are very aware of what happened and are taking it serious. The Mission Belle skipper was saying how wooden hulls have had their insurance significantly increased. The long range boats have definitely made known the escape hatches from below, and left them accessible. They also strongly request you don’t leave your devices plugged in where they’re not under direct observation. Tough and sorry lesson for everyone.
Sad but inevitable. Fits the Captain’s responsibility. If it is possible to happen, it will as all accidents that happen at sea. CG Regulations to follow...
Have you seen a boat go up? Lithium batteries? Watch can’t be every where. Never really see them in the bunks. The idea of a dedicated watch is nice but they’re usually multitasking.
A prior outcome of “seaman’s manslaughter” case:
www.professionalmariner.com
Article on the statute:
Charter boat captain sentenced to 6 years for death of 3 passengers - Professional Mariner
An Oregon charter boat captain was sentenced on May 18 to six years imprisonment for causing the deaths of three of his passengers while attempting to cross the Umpqua River Bar after it had been closed by the Coast Guard. This sentence is the harshest ever imposed under the 170-year-old...
www.professionalmariner.com
Article on the statute:
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If it can be shown that the owners knew or should have known that the captain was acting in a way that was likely to cause death or injury then the owners could be found to be criminally negligent.
Usually the deck watch person is sitting in the galley, Bull shiting with customers or watching T.V.
He‘s 67. It doesn’t take much for a life sentence at that age.
Larmo - been following your clown show for a while on all these boat tragedies - your opinions are worthless
They suspect that the fire started due to battery charging. The USCG came out with a bulletin warning to watch battery charging and use of extension cords among other things shortly after it happened. Unlikely they will ever prove battery charging was the cause with 100% certainty.
The liability is not with the cause of the fire but the Captain's failure to post a watch and adequately train the crew to deal with emergency situations.
Agree with you.
But if it goes to a jury, the defense only needs to sway one juror with reasonable doubt.
That's all I was saying.
