Collapsed marine company AWB Contractors and director fined $1m over fatal yacht lift

A collapsed marine salvage company and its director were fined more than $1 million after a wharf worker was killed in a horror incident.

Wharf worker Max Haywood died in the incident in 2021.

A collapsed marine and salvage company and its director have been fined more than $1 million, after worker Max Haywood was killed in a horror workplace incident in Sydney.

Paul Whitmarsh, the sole director of AWB Contractors, was fined $300,000 in the NSW District Court after being found guilty for failing to comply with his work health and safety duty, exposing Mr Haywood to risk of death.

AWB Contractors, which is now in liquidation, was also fined $765,000 yesterday.

Mr Haywood, a 55-year old man from Campbelltown, died when the company had attempted to lift the yacht, named Crazy Train, on January 27, 2021.

Part of the boat’s mast fell, struck and killed him.

The sentencing in the NSW District Court on Wednesday followed a judge-only trial, where Mr Whitmarsh pleaded not guilty.

AWB Contractors meanwhile pleaded guilty to failing to comply with its duty under the Work Health and Safety Act, exposing Mr Haywood to risk of death.

The company, which operated in Rozelle with about six employees, was placed into liquidation in November last year.

AWB provided salvage operations for vessels and built small waterfront marinas, mainly in Sydney Harbour.

Rozelle Bay. Image: John Grainger

The court heard it was often engaged by Transport for NSW to remove vessels and dispose of them.

AWB was engaged by Transport for NSW to salvage the submerged yacht Crazy Train in January 2021.

The judgment stated Mr Haywood had worked with Mr Whitmarsh for about 30 years and was very experienced, having been involved in most of the salvages for many years.

Mr Whitmarsh told Matthew Poulton, the employee supervising the lift, to use a sling attached to the mast to crane lift the yacht from the water.

However, Mr Poulton did not have a crane driving licence and hadn’t been formally trained, the judgment said.

The plan was to lift the submerged boat up, in order to pump water out of it and to get it to float.

The men would then place slings underneath the vessel and lift it out entirely of the water.

Mr Poulton engaged one of the levers of the crane to lift the hook with the sling attached to the mast.

As the boat lifted, Mr Haywood, who was assisting nearby on the deck of a barge, appeared to bend down towards ropes but the top of the yacht’s mast fell and struck him in the back of his head.

The court found Mr Whitmarsh failed to exercise due diligence to ensure AWB complied with its work health and safety duties.

Police at the scene, after the incident. Image: John Grainger

It also found the company had failed to undertake multiple measures, like undertaking an adequate risk assessment before work commenced on Crazy Train and stopping workers from exceeding the safe working limits of the crane and lifting equipment.

AWB did not employ a dedicated safety manager, the court heard.

It prepared a Safe Work Method Statement for some jobs, which were overseen and signed by Mr Whitmarsh.

The company mandated measures in new Safe Work Method Statements after Mr Haywood’s death, but Judge Russell noted they weren’t carried out on the day of the incident.

These included lifting should only occur by slings fixed to the hull of the vessel and never to fixtures or the mast, and cranes must only be operated by a certified person.

In a victim impact statement, Mr Haywood’s wife Tracey said the news of his death changed her life forever.

Mrs Haywood said she had been diagnosed with depression and anxiety and she was now working two jobs to make ends meet.

“All the emotions hit at once, I felt like I couldn’t breathe, it felt like someone had sucker punched me to the stomach.”

Max Haywood, aged 55, was killed in the incident in 2021.

His daughter, Rebekah Haywood explained in her victim impact statement she was shocked and angry that AWB was still operating for months after the incident and that Mr

Whitmarsh was able to “get on with his life like nothing happened”.

As a result of the incident, AWB wasn’t awarded work from many former clients, which eventually led to its collapse, the court heard.

It went into liquidation owing $96,130 to employees for superannuation and $910,587 to the Australian Taxation Office, the judgment said.

However, Judge Russell noted a liquidator’s report said the company may have traded while insolvent from at least 30 June 2020, if not earlier.

The liquidator is also investigating over $3 million worth of potential voidable transactions, in favour of Mr Whitmarsh or associated entities.

Mr Whitmarsh continued to work as a director for another similar business, AWB Waterfront Constructions, but he said it had also suffered reputational damage from the incident.

Judge Russell said the risk of the yacht lift was known by Mr Whitmarsh and there had been steps available to minimise it.

Rozelle Bay. Image: John Grainger

He added Mr Whitmarsh had not accepted responsibility for his actions or Mr Haywood’s death.

“Every worker should be able to come home safely at the end of their shift.

“The legal obligation is to eliminate or minimise risks.

“Instead, Mr Whitmarsh created multiple risks and showed little or no regard for the safety of the loyal employees of AWB.”

Judge Russell also rejected that he was unlikely to reoffend, noting there was “no evidence of the safety systems and practices adopted at Mr Whitmarsh’s new business”.

But he accepted that Mr Whitmarsh had expressed regret, noting he and the company had no prior convictions or criminal history.

Originally published as Collapsed marine company AWB Contractors and director fined $1m over fatal yacht lift