Urgent changes to fishing industry recommended after FV Dianne inquest

A government department has been savaged by a coroner for its “baffling” failure to implement a safety system that could have saved lives at sea.

A QUEENSLAND coroner has launched a scathing attack on the Department of Fisheries for its “baffling” failure to implement a readily available and life-saving safety system which alerts authorities when a vessel is in trouble.

Coroner David O’Connell has called for urgent changes to the fishing industry’s safety practices in the wake of the tragic deaths of eight fishermen who died after two capsizing events off Queensland’s coast.

Sea turtle named in honour of FV Dianne crew released back into ocean by victims’ families

FV Dianne: Siblings of drowned crewmen Zac Feeney honour their brother

Fiancee pays heartfelt tribute to love of her life, who died when FV Dianne rolled in rough seas

Mr O’Connell oversaw the inquests into the deaths of six fishermen who died in October 2017 when their sea cucumber trawler FV Dianne capsized near 1770, leaving only one survivor who told the court of his harrowing night listening to his trapped friends scream for help as the vessel slowly sank.

The inquest also investigated the sinking of the prawn trawler FV Cassandra, which sank off the coast of Fraser Island in April 2016, killing its two crew members.

The coroner today released his findings into the deaths, criticizing the time it took for authorities to be alerted to the Dianne’s capsizing.

It was only after the sole survivor Ruben McDornan swam through the night and was “miraculously” noticed by the crew of a passing yacht that anyone knew the vessel had sunk.

“From the first moment of the capsize to the first time that any rescue authority was aware that the capsize has occurred (and there was a potential loss of life) was nearly 12 hours,” Mr O’Connell said.

Sea cucumber trawler the FV Dianne

“In modern times and with the technology then available and being used, that is simply unacceptable.”

He said all commercial fishing vessels including the Dianne and the Cassandra had a vessel monitoring system (VMS) which was introduced by the Department of Fisheries in the 1990s and “sold” to the industry on the bases of its tracking system and safety attributes.

The VMS has a safety function in which local authorities including police can be immediately alerted via text message and email if the vessel ‘fails to poll’ or send back radio signal. The system is being used in Western Australia but has not been enacted in other states including Queensland.

Mr O’Connell attacked DAF for its conduct during the inquest in which it claimed on at least four occasions that the VMS system did not have a safety function.

“Not only did that department adopt an approach which was in my view simply bureaucratic obstruction in an attempt to ‘defend’ their then position, the worst aspect was that it took until sometime during the inquest before any concession was made by the department that not only was this function of the VMS currently available, and that it already exists, but that it had existed for quite some time,” the coroner said.

Sole survivor Ruben McDornan

“What I find unacceptable is that a government department can ‘sell’ a system to the industry claiming it has a benefit to the industry but then not implement the system with that benefit; but worse is to take a demonstrably wrong position to claim that the system cannot do this function and maintain that in their statements to the inquest.

“Bureaucrats such as these need to understand that they exist to serve the public and carry out the functions of government. The department would be wise to investigate and learn how the industry’s concerns on this safety aspect could have been brushed away and not acted upon for so many years, especially so after inquests on precisely this issue previously.”

The coroner made nine recommendations as part of his findings, including that DAF “immediately” implement its failure to poll function which would alert Queensland Police via text message and email when a vessel didn’t check in.

He also recommended a number of safety changes including that vessels be fitted with ‘grab bags’ of basic equipment to assist crew trapped in capsized vessels, that vessels be fitted with self-illuminating LED lighting and emergency exit signs, that bulky items within wheelhouses be properly secured and changes to ensure vessel doors can be opened against water pressure.

FV Dianne

- Sank on October 16, 2017, in rough seas off the coast of 1770

- The vessel was an 18-metre sea cucumber trawler

- Coroner O’Connell found the vessel sank when it was overcome by heavy seas. He found a rope from the drogue fouled the propeller before it sank.

- Ruben McDornan was the sole survivor of the Dianne sinking.

- His crewmates including skipper Ben Leahy, 45, Adam Bidner, 33, Zach Feeney, 28, Adam Hoffman, 30, Chris Sammut, 34, and Eli Tonks, 39 all died in the tragic incident.

FV Cassandra

- Sank on April 4, 2016 in the Coral Sea, about 5nm off the coast of Fraser Island

- The vessel was a 17-metre prawn trawler with two people on board

- Coroner O’Connell found the vessel capsized as the crew tried to retrieve a snagged net. He said it appeared likely that the net had been drawn very tightly and when it came free, it caused the vessel flip over.

- The two crew members David Chivers, 36, and Matthew Roberts, 61, both died in the sinking.

Coroner’s recommendations

- That the fishing industry be encouraged to place emergency ‘grab bags’ of basic equipment to assist crew to escape capsized vessels.

- That self-illuminating LED strip-lighting and emergency exit signs be installed in all existing vessels within two years and after that period, it become a mandated requirement in all commercial fishing vessels

- That the industry be encouraged to secure all bulky items in a wheelhouse with straps or bolts to stop movement in a capsizing event

- That fishermen be encouraged to wear inflatable vests fitted with personal locator beacons when working on the decks or at the helm

- That authorities and industry review the use of quad gear used for trawling in the Sandy Straits

- That authorities investigate ways to ensure doors on vessels can be opened against water pressure

- That authorities ensure all vessels have up to date plans of the layout and any modifications with copies kept in a secure place on land and by regulatory authorities

- That fishing safety management systems include safe methods for retrieving snagged nets

- That the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries immediately implement the sharing of the ‘failure to poll’ function of the Vessel Management System to allow the Queensland Police to be immediately notified via text message and email of any failure to poll by a vessel