Skipper denies his yacht was unsafe

Press, 26 December 1984, Page 4

Skipper denies his yacht was unsafe

PA Napier The skipper of the ketch Lee Breeze 11, which was met by the police when it sailed into Napier on Sunday after radio messages suggested a mutiny aboard, still wants to sail to the United States. The 15-metre yacht, its skipper, Mr Roy Sutherland, and four crew members, were on a voyage to the United States via Chile when it turned around and headed back to New Zealand after only a few days at sea. Mr Sutherland, aboard the yacht moored at Napier yesterday at first refused to talk to reporters. He later said that the news media’s coverage of the boat’s voyage had got “out of hand.” At no time was the yacht unsafe, he said. “No harm could have come to anyone. It (the yacht) was safe at all times.” Only about 12 hours work was needed on the boat to make the yacht sea-

worthy. He said that he would resume his voyage to the United States as soon as the yacht was repaired and he could get another crew. The police interviewed Mr Sutherland, an Auckland company director, and the crew as soon as the ketch arrived in Napier. Senior-Sergeant Don Berryman said that the police would not lay charges against the crew of Jeanette Richardson, of Auckland, Derek Percy, of Rotorua, Paul Nankivell, of Whangarei, and Barry Pentecost, of Christchurch. Mr Berryman said that there had been trouble with equipment on the ketch about two or three days out to sea. The crew had opted to return to New Zealand to have repairs done, but the skipper was against the idea. Although there had been domestic trouble aboard there was not enough evidence to make it a mutiny, Mr Berryman said. The three men on the

crew have now left the boat. Two of them, Paul Nankivell and Barry Pentecost, said yesterday morning that they were out of pocket by at least $l6OO, the amount they paid Mr Sutherland for a berth on the ketch. The two had joined the ketch after answering a newspaper advertisement. However, preparations for the voyage had not gone smoothly and Mr Nankivell said he almost left the ketch the day before it sailed from Auckland because he felt things were not right. Mr Pentecost, an electrician, said that he spent $4OO of his own money working on the boat before it set sail. They said the boat was not fully repaired when they left Auckland and they spent the first two days at sea continuing repairs. After a few days at sea the bilge pumps and the refrigerator broke down and diesel fuel was leaking into the bilges, Mr Nankivell said.