THE BLUFF ENQUIRY.

Southland Times, Issue 16688, 17 March 1911, Page 5

THE BLUFF ENQUIRY.

FINDING OF THE COURT. CAPTAIN FINNIS PAYS £ 40. SUGGESTED PILOTAGE IMPROVEMENTS. (From Our Own Reporter.) BLUFF, March 16. The nautical inquiry Into the circumstances of the stranding of tho Knight of the Garter in Bluff Harbour on 17th February has occupied the attention of Mi- G. Cruickshank, S.M., and Captain Holloas and Captain Sundstrum, Assessors, for the past two days. A great amount of evidence (as reported elsewhere) has been taken, and the finding of the Court has been awaited with keen interest. The Knight of the Garter was commanded by Captain Finnis, her tonnage 4 295, and she belongs to Greenshields, Cowie and Co., of Liverpool; but was under charter to the New Zealand Shipping Company. The judgment of the Court, as given to-night, was as follows; — After hearing all the parties, the Court finds that the master, who knew that the Bluff Harbour was a compulsory pilotage port, entered such harbour contrary to the sailing directions In the “Now Zealand Pilot,” without first securing- the services of a pilot, while this was not suoh a wilful default as to, in the Court's opinion, call for his certificate being dealt with, it was a grave error of judgment of which this Court marks its serious disapproval by ordering him to pay £4O towards the costs of the inquiry. The certificate of the master will be returned to him. The Court further finds that the look-out service of the Bluff Harbour Board maintained at Stirling Point is wanting in efficiency. If the look-out men had had their duties better defined it is probable that the Initial mistake of the master would have been rectified in time to have averted tho disaster. The Court also finds that the harbourmaster, after the stranding, showed lack of foresight in not leaving a pilot on hoard the vessel and in not having the tug in close attendance to assist when the tide beg'an to make. The Harbour Board being thus found in default, it is ordered to pay the balance of the costs (£9 13s 6d). The Court farther adds as a rider the following recommendations: — (X) That, in the interests of shipping, it is advisable for the Bluff Harbour Board to issue suoh instructions to their pilots as will insure their prompt boarding of vessels on arrival at the limits of pilotage waters, whether the tide then suits or not for bringing the vessels in. (2) That the attention of the Harbour Board be drawn to the misleading information in the “Hew Zealand Pilot” and the New Zealand Nautical Almanac as to the signal staff at Stirling Point. That, as fog is somewhat prevalent at Bluff, it is desirable to have the flagstaff at Stirling Point re-established. In delivering judgment, the Magistrate said that he and the Assessors wished to express their appreciation of the assistance given by the counsel engaged in the case—Mr Hanlon for Captain Finnis, Mr Macdonald for the Harbourmaster. and Mr Macallster for the Harbour Board. They wished particularly to express their appreciation of the very able and impartial manner in which Mr H. R. Spence had conducted the Inquiry on behalf of the Marine Department. His presentation of the case had been of very great assistance to them in obtaining a dispassionate knowledge of the facts of the occurrence.