An inquiry into the death of a fisherman who drowned after going overboard in seas north of Co Donegal found the “safety culture” on board the vessel fell below standards expected.
In February 2023, the fisherman was pulled off the deck of FV Séimi when he became entangled in a rope while shooting lobster pots in waters 60 nautical miles north of Arainn Mhór island, according to the Marine Casualty Investigation Board (MCIB).
The fisherman was later retrieved by his crewmates, having been in the water for about 15 minutes. An attempt was made to resuscitate him, but this was unsuccessful.
The board’s inquiry found that an obligation on a fishing vessel’s owner or master to ensure there is a sufficiently qualified crew on board was not observed.
RM Block
“In this case, the absence of sufficiently qualified crew and the vessel’s failure to comply with the [Department of Transport’s] code of practice, coupled with the lack of drills, formal training, risk assessment, records and safety standards all indicate that the safety culture on board FV Séimi was below the standards that should be expected on board a commercially operated fishing vessel,” said the board.
The inquiry into the FV Séimi drowning was one of several documents highlighted in the MCIB’s 2024 Annual Report, published on Wednesday.
Another inquiry outlined in the annual report examined the drowning of a man off Bruckless Pier, Co Donegal, in September 2023.
The inquiry found the man’s death was caused by several factors, including that he was operating his boat alone in difficult weather conditions, did not have a life jacket, and had no means of raising the alarm.
In another incident, in June 2023, a man was swept out to sea and drowned after trying to board a recreational boat as it drifted from Lacken Pier, Beltra, Co Mayo. An inquiry found his chances of survival would have significantly improved had he been wearing a life jacket.
The MCIB is yet to publish a report on the death of fisherman John Burke, the only fatal incident recorded by the authority last year.
According to the board’s summary of the incident, Mr Burke likely went overboard from his small fishing vessel after it took on water and capsized in seas off Inishbofin Island, Co Galway, last June. The board said Mr Burke had no means to communicate his distress, and the incident went unnoticed until a day later. Mr Burke’s remains eventually washed ashore.
The MCBI continues to investigate other non-fatal incidents reported last year, including the sinking of passenger vessel Sea Breeze III close to Skellig Michael in Co Kerry.
