Fullers to pay $130k for pier crash
At least 19 passengers were injured when the Kea ferry slammed into the Devonport wharf at a speed of 13km/h in February 2015.
Ferry operator Fullers has been ordered to pay $90,000 to victims of a crash and fined $40,000 after one of its vessels collided with an Auckland pier.
At least 19 passengers were injured, including one with a serious concussion, when the faulty Kea ferry slammed into the Devonport wharf at a speed of seven knots (13km/h) in February 2015.
Last year the company pleaded guilty to the charge of failing to take all practicable steps to ensure that no action or inaction of any employee harmed another person.
Today, in the Auckland District Court, it was ordered to pay reparations of $90,000 and a fine of $40,000, following a prosecution by Maritime NZ.
The helmsman of the Kea said the vessel’s digital controls were faulty so he reverted to manual controls but lost control of one of its thrusters because the transfer was unsuccessful.
Passengers were not warned about the impending crash and were thrown out of their seats. Unsecured bench seating on the main deck exacerbated the impact, Maritime NZ says.
Maritime NZ regional compliance manager Neil Rowarth says although Fullers had identified problems with the vessel’s digital control system, “it had failed to adequately manage the risk to ensure the safety of passengers and crew."
Maritime NZ says switching controls while the vessel was moving increased the risk of a crash if the manual process failed.
“The company advised Maritime NZ that a procedure was in place to manage issues with the control system but this procedure was not sufficient to properly manage the risk. The need to have adequately secured seating was especially important because of known problems with the control system.
“Paying passengers and crew working on board should feel safe in the knowledge that procedures are in place to manage risks and a vessel is in the right condition to operate safely. This was clearly not the case in this instance.
“This sentence should send a strong message to the industry that risks must be properly managed.”
Campbell Gibson
Mon, 29 May 2017
Mon, 29 May 2017
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Fullers to pay $130k for pier crash
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