Tears as fatal L'Ecume II case concludes with inquests

Inquests into the deaths of three fishermen whose trawler sank between Jersey and Guernsey following a collision with a cargo boat have concluded they drowned.

Michael Michieli, Jervis Baligat and Larry Simyunn were onboard L'Ecume II when it collided with the Commodore Goodwill in the early hours of 8 December 2022.

The inquests could not be closed until all legal proceedings against the Goodwill's crew had ended. Earlier, a report revealed key personnel on both vessels were "distracted" or absent from navigational duties as the risk of collision escalated.

Michieli's wife Clare and brother Robert were in tears as the coroner relayed the events to the hearing at Morier House in St Helier.

Viscount of Jersey, Advocate Mark Harris, described how the Commodore Goodwill was behind schedule while sailing south from Guernsey, while the L'Ecume II was sailing north ready to start fishing.

Harris told the court that Lewis Carr, the officer in charge of the Goodwill, noticed the fishing boat at the last minute and failed to take the right action to avoid a collision.

The Goodwill and L'Ecume II collided, and caused catastrophic damage and sank the latter almost immediately, the inquest heard.

Carr was jailed for one year and eight months in December for breaching Jersey's shipping law.

The bodies of crew members Baligat and Simyunn were recovered soon after, but it took until April 2023 to find the remains of Michieli.

The coroner reviewed the findings of the post-mortem examinations and concluded all three men had drowned. Simyunn also had a serious head injury, which would probably have knocked him unconscious almost immediately, the inquest was told.

Harris drew attention to the report published earlier by the authorities of Jersey and the Bahamas, where the Goodwill was registered.

It made recommendations about how similar incidents could be avoided, which included ensuring that lookouts were not too tired to be fully alert.

Harris expressed his sympathy to the families who he said had waited so long to discover the full details of what had happened to their loved ones.

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