GROSS CARELESSNESS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 24897, 22 April 1942, Page 3

GROSS CARELESSNESS

WORKERS ON THE NORMANDIE RESPONSIBLE FOR FIRE (Rec. 7 p.m.) WASHINGTON, Apl. 20. The Navy Department announced that the Court of Inquiry which had investigated the first outbreak of fire on the French liner Normandie in NewYork Harbour on February 9, placed full responsibility on the employees of the Robins Drydock Repair Company. The report said that the direct and sole cause of the fire was the gross carelessness of the company's workmen, who had shown, an " utter violation of the rules and lack of common sense." The court recommended that proceedings should be taken against the Robins Company for damages to the full extent of its liability. The Court of Inquiry pointed out that the contract covering the conversion of the Normandie limits the Robins Company's liability to 300,000 dollars. The Secretary of the Navy, Colonel Frank Knox, issued a supplementary report in which he branded two officers assigned to protect the Normandie as guilty of carelessness. He declared, however, that, because of mitigating circumstances, the officers would not be court-martialled. They are Lieu-tenant-commander Early Brooks, of the Coast Guard, and Lieutenant-com-mander Lester C. Scott, of the Naval Reserve.

Colonel Knox also appointed a committee of marine experts to recommend further steps in the efforts to salvage the Normandie