Prosecution Details

(1) Being an employee, failed to take reasonable care to avoid adversely affecting the safety of other persons, through his omission at work of failing to order the return of the fishing vessel Advancer to Beadon Creek anchorage when the cyclone "Bobby" was within 200km of his position.

(2) Being an employee, failed to take reasonable care to avoid adversely affecting the safety of other persons, through his omission at work of failing to regularly monitor weather information so as to identify and monitor cyclonic activity while in charge of the fishing vessel Advancer.

This prosecution relates to the skipper remaining at sea and exposing his crew to a risk by not returning the vessel to a safe anchorage in a timely manner. On or about the 22, 23 and 24 February 1995 Cyclone Bobby bore down on the vessel.

The Magistrate commented "that he had little difficulty in concluding that the defendant failed to take reasonable care to avoid affecting the safety of his crew by failing to regularly monitor the weather information which was available in relation to Cyclone Bobby and by failing to order the return of the fishing vessel Advancer to Beadon Creek anchorage in time to avoid it being subjected to the effect of Cyclone Bobby." The Magistrate also commented that being "a qualified skipper had an obligation to satisfy himself of weather conditions."