CAPTAIN BLAMED

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 69, Issue 264, 20 August 1949, Page 8

CAPTAIN BLAMED

Motor-ship Stranding MARINE COURT INQUIRY (P.A.) AUCKLAND, Aug. 19. The failure of Captain Llewelyn Roberts to take bearings after Wharton Light and keep a proper look-out was the cause of the casualty to the motor-vessel Kinabatangan, which was stranded on Clak reef, on the north-east coast of Australia, on June 10. This was stated in an interim finding delivered by the president of the Marine Court of Inqury (Mr J. 11. Luxford, S.M.) at Hie resumption of the inquiry to-day. Further evidence will be heard on Friday on tlfe extent of the damage to the ship. On this evidence hinges the question of penalty. The President directed that the ticket of Chief Officer John Blackburn be returned to him.

The Kinabatangan was on her way from Singapore to Auckland. When the stranding occurred she was proceeding from Thursday Island to Brisbane.

The President said that after passing Wharton Light at about 9 p.m. Ihe vessel was on a course which would enable her to pass safely between Clak Reef and Flinders Island. Because of bad helmsmanship, or set of the tide, the vessel did not maintain her course, but drifted to the north, and ran aground on the southern side of Clak Reef. She remained aground for about 26 hours, then, at high water, she got clear. The night was clear, and from about 9 o’clock there was bright moonlight. If the master had been keeping a proper lookout be would have seen Clak Island ahead in ample time to have altered his course and put the island on the vessel’s port bow before it was abeam of Clak Reef.

The allegation that the master was under the influence of liquor when the casualty occurred had not in the Court’s opinion been proved. The Court must assume ihat Singapore manning requirements had been complied with.

“Misleading Entry in Log’’

The evidence showed that as a result of the orders given by the master, a, misleading entry was made in the log to conceal the casualty, also that the master intended to, and did, conceal the casualty. It might well be that the master’s acts in that regard would be subject .to investigation by another court, so the Court refrained from further comment, except to say that from the constituted facts the Court drew the inference that Captain Roberts realised the cause of the casualty was his careless navigation, “In our opinion,” said the President, “the carelessness of the master, having regard to the known navigational dangers of the locality, amounts to negligence of a serious nature.”

Imposition of Penalty Dealing with the question of penalty, the President quoted section 238 of the Shipping and Seamen Act, 1908, which said the certificate of a master, mate, or engineer might be cancelled or suspended if a Court found that loss or abandonment of, or serious damage, to any ship . . . had been caused by a wrongful act or default. The President said he had not heard any evidence whether ihe damage constituted “serious” damage. He commented that it seemed extraordinary that the results of carelessness should determine whether or not the master should have his certificate suspended. The law, however, was quite clear, that unless the damage was “serious” the certificate could not be suspended. It simply meant that if a man were lucky he might escape, and if lie were unlucky—-for instance, if the weather was bad—he might not escape. . 4