Boat captain Omar Johnson was fined $1,000 this week after admitting that he had 12 people on board a vessel certified for a maximum of eight.
Johnson pleaded guilty to conveying persons for hire unsafely, operating a vessel without safety equipment and navigating a vessel in such a manner as to cause risk of damage.
But he maintained that his passengers were never in danger and the failure of the boat’s bilge pump was an accident.
Crown Counsel Richard Hearnden said charges arose from an incident that occurred on 19 October, 2006. Police received a report from the Port Authority that the vessel Go with the Flow was taking on water near the Sand Bar in North Sound.
The marine unit responded but the vessel was able to limp back to the Yacht Club. There the owner told police he had loaded 10 passengers and a cameraman for a snorkelling trip.
At the Coral Gardens dive site, five passengers and the cameraman got into the water. The captain then observed a lot of water coming in over the stern. He immediately started up the engine and kept moving to keep the water from coming in.
The captain called another boat to take his passengers, then collected the snorkellers and cameraman. With the boat at full throttle, it took 45 minutes to get back to the Yacht Club dock.
There it was found that the bilge pump had failed and the vessel was in contravention of regulations.
Mr. Hearnden said the captain was not tracked down until March, when he gave a statement under caution. In his statement, Johnson said he thought the boat was rated for 10 people.
In court, Johnson said the boat wasn’t really sinking and the police had been called by someone who didn’t like his boss.
Johnson also denied not having enough life vests on board along with other specified safety equipment such as signalling devices and flares. He admitted, however, that there was no fire extinguisher.
As to capacity, Johnson said the owner put the people on board.
Magistrate Nova Hall fined Johnson $500 for conveying people in an unsafe vessel and $500 for not having the required safety equipment. There was no separate penalty for the navigating charge.
The owner of the vessel was also charged, but he has not been dealt with.
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