Permanent memorial for FV Dianne victims to be built at 1770 lookout

A permanent memorial will now be built to remember six crewman who perished aboard the FV Dianne trawler when it sunk off the Queensland coast near 1770 in October 2017. See the designs here.

The construction is underway of a permanent memorial to honour six crewman who tragically lost their lives when a trawler sunk off Central Queensland’s coast in 2017.

Five years on from the FV Dianne tragedy, friends and family of the victims will have an permanently-fixed memorial to remember their loved ones, replacing an unofficial one at the same location.

Only one crewman, Ruben McDornan, survived when the boat flipped in rough seas near the historic town of 1770, 90 minutes south of Gladstone, in October 2017.

A tribute of the FV Dianne crew posted on social media by sole survivor, Ruben McDornan. Picture: Supplied

Since the tragedy, pictures and flowers have been left at the 1770 lookout in the Joseph Banks Conservation Park to grieve and commemorate the passing of skipper Benjamin Patrick Leahy, Adam Hoffman, Eli Tonks, Adam Jeffrey Bidner, Zachary Feeney, and Chris Sammut.

A 2019 joint inquest into the tragedy was scathing of the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries (DAF) in their failure to share Vessel Monitoring Data (VMS) with police and made a number of safety recommendations.

An artist’s impression of the permanent memorial to be built for the victims of the fatal FV Dianne tragedy in October 2017. Picture: Supplied

Transport Minister Mark Bailey said Maritime Safety Queensland, the lead agency in the project, consulted with the crew members families and the local Volunteer Marine Rescue in designing the memorial.

“It has been nearly five years since the tragedy, but it is important we get this right,” Mr Bailey said.

A permanent memorial for the victims will soon be erected to replace this temporary tribute site as work begins Monday morning near 1770. Picture: Stephen Bennett MP

“We also wanted to make sure the memorial honours the actions of the local community who responded to the incident,” he said.

Designs of the permanent memorial for the victims of the fatal FV Dianne tragedy in October 2017 will soon be erected as work begins Monday morning near Agnes Water. Picture: Supplied

Burnett MP Stephen Bennett said the community, families, survivors, and traditional owners had been advocating for such a memorial for almost five years.

“To see it finally come to fruition brings many people some long sought-after comfort and a sense of peace … a huge thanks must go to the community who helped to push for this memorial to become a reality,” Mr Bennett said.

Member for Burnett, Stephen Bennett said the community and loved ones of the victims had been pushing for such a memorial site ever since the tragedy occured. Picture: News Corp

Designs published on social media by the Burnett MP indicate the individual names of each victim will be inscribed on the face of Capping Stone seats which lookout over the ocean.

Works began on Monday morning to build the memorial and it was expected to be completed by September.