Three brothers who drowned in Tramore Bay, Co Waterford, after their punt capsized in June 2013, were fishing outside their certified area of compliance, according to the official investigation into the incident.
The six-metre wooden boat MVF Dean Leanne was carrying one more person than it was certified for or had safety equipment for, the Marine Casualty Investigation Board (MCIB) report has found.
Two of the three men, Paul (49), Kenny (47) and Shane (44) Bolger, were wearing lifejackets which had not been maintained, the report said.
The boat’s emergency position indicating radio beacon (EPIRB) failed to activate, and a subsequent “inherent fault” in the device led to a global recall of affected safety beacons by the manufacturer, the report said.
The board’s report said the vessel “possibly encountered wind or wave action or a combination of both” after it left Dunmore East, Co Waterford, early on June 12th, 2013, to tend lobster pots.
It said the wind or wave action “may have caused the vessel to be swamped and lose reserve of buoyancy beyond which it was unable to recover for its loaded condition, resulting in its sinking”.
The last recorded sighting of the punt was at 2pm near Brownstown Head, and the alarm was raised at 5.29pm when it was reported that the vessel was overdue.
The report said that the operational area of the vessel was the Waterford estuary within five miles (8km) of a safe haven, but it was operating “outside the parameters” of its declaration of compliance.
Hypothermia
Postmortem results established that all three brothers died due to drowning induced by hypothermia. They were in the water for over an hour before the emergency services reached them, it is thought.
If they had been wearing well-maintained personal flotation devices with working hydrostatic releases, it could have increased their chances of survival, the report said.
The report’s recommendations on safety equipment, including fitting automatic float-free emergency radio beacons on boats under 12m in length and use of personal locator beacons by crew on boats under 15m in length, have been incorporated in revised codes of practice.
