Ship captain testifies over diver's death

A German captain of a container ship, charged with the manslaughter of a diver who died when inspecting a vessel last year, yesterday told a court how both the diver and himself had signed a paper which stated that all was safe for diving.

Captain Peter Karl Bergmann told Magistrate Abigail Lofaro how, before diving to inspect the ship's hull, diver Raymond van Beek gave him a six-question safety questionnaire which included the question: Is the bow thruster switched off?

The complete questionnaire was filled in - indicating that all was safe - and signed by Mr Bergmann, chief engineer Herman Dieter Raake and by Mr van Beek himself.

Mr Bergmann was testifying in his own defence in the compilation of evidence against himself and Mr Raake.

They are pleading not guilty to the involuntary homicide of 40-year-old Dutch diver Mr van Beek, who died in an accident involving the bow thruster while inspecting the container ship at the Malta Freeport on July 11 last year.

Mr Bergmann explained that he had been a captain of ocean-going vessels since the 1970s during which time he had never had an accident in which a person was harmed.

On July 11, 2004, he woke up at about 3 a.m. when the ship was about 25 miles away from the Maltese harbour. Some 20 minutes later he went over to the ship's bridge, took over command from the second officer and started a 40-minute procedure to enter the harbour.

At about 3.30 a.m., when the ship was some 14 miles away from the harbour, he switched over to manoeuvre mode and later moved on to pilot boarding position.

At about 4.30 a.m. the bow thruster was started to improve manoeuvrability of the vessel and, within a few minutes, two Maltese pilots boarded the ship as was normal procedure.

At the same time the captain ordered his crew to be on stand-by on the ship's stern to help tie the two Maltese tugboats.

The captain then went over to the bridge's wings to manoeuvre the vessel and, at 5.30 a.m., the ship was docked without any problems.

While the captain was on the bridge's wings, the chief nautical officer - a certain Mr Flink - was on the bridge where there were the main controls of the ship.

Once the ship was successfully docked, the captain went to the bridge and contacted the chief engineer, Mr Raake, who was in the engine control room, to inform him that the ship was ready to be switched to harbour mode.

This meant that the ship moved into manual control and the control centre shifted from the bridge to the engine room.

Once this was done, the captain went to fill in documentation. Meanwhile, Mr Flink shut down several systems including the bow thruster and this was confirmed by Mr Bergmann himself. Mr Raake, he explained, was responsible for the main engine.

Mr Flink then escorted the two Maltese pilots off the vessel and took charge of unloading the cargo at the port.

Mr Bergmann explained that, while the ship was docked, it was to undergo a series of inspections for safety and insurance purposes.

Due to time restraints set by the classification society, German Lloyds, the most important inspections were selected. These were to include an underwater hull inspection and an inspection of machinery in the engine room.

The captain met with a Lloyds' inspector and later on met with the diver, who he had never met before. Mr Bergmann, together with Mr Flink and Mr Raake, discussed safety aspects with the diver and some time later Mr Flink left them to tend to the cargo.

Mr Bergmann explained that the diver gave him a list of requisites which included a 220-metre-long rope which was to be placed alongside the ship on the waterline.

The diver also requested that Flag A, which signalled a diver at work, be raised and that two caution signs, announcing a diver at work, be placed in the engine room and in the ship's office just above the control panels.

The diver also handed out a questionnaire which included questions such as: Was the Flag A hoisted and are the rudder engine, bow thruster and main engine off?

The complete questionnaire - ascertaining that all criteria were satisfied - was signed by Mr Bergmann, Mr Raake and the diver himself. The captain added that since Mr Flink was not on board at the time, he contacted him via walkie-talkie and read out the questions to him.

The diver went to prepare his equipment and, at about the same time, the Lloyds inspector and the chief engineer went to inspect the engine room.

The diver then sent back to the ship and, following a brief discussion, the diver, the captain and the Lloyds inspector headed over to the diver's launch.

Mr Bergmann explained that, in line with international law, when he stepped off the ship the responsibility of the ship shifted over to the chief nautical officer, Mr Flink.

Mr Bergmann recalled that when he went onto the launch there were the skipper and another two men, one of whom was an assistant diver.

He also recalled that he did not hear or feel that the 2,700-horsepower bow thruster was on and added that, had it been, the launch would have been pushed away.

The captain explained that the diver had cables attached to his head to provide audio and visual signals with the launch where there was a monitor. He even remembered that the cables were held in place on the monitor on board with clothes pegs.

Some 15 minutes after the diver submerged, the captain noticed that the monitor and the audio equipment had lost their signal but a man on board said that it was probably the usual loose connection.

Then, he said, he saw bubbles and black pieces come to the surface.

"I had a bad feeling. Some time before I had been joking with the diver that his equipment looked old and patchy as it was leaking. He joked with me and told me that is was OK for Malta as the weather was nice.

"I tried to pull the cable to help and the whole cable came out of the water. It was torn and there was some flesh attached. We were all in shock," he recalled sombrely.

He went on to explain how he contacted Mr Flink via walkie-talkie and contacted the Valletta port for emergency.

Mr Flink informed him that the bow thruster was running in neutral position but no one could explain who had turned it on.

The bow thruster could not have been switched on accidentally since it took four steps to get it in motion.

Besides, at the time the ship was operating on one generator and, in order for the bow thruster to be put on, there would have had to be someone in the engine room and on the bridge operating at the same time.

The case continues this afternoon when Mr Raake is expected to give evidence.

Lawyers Stefano Filletti and Stefan Frendo are appearing for the accused.