‘Some fishermen have false sense of security’
‘Nothing beats the good old fashioned compass’
Dr Fenech says it is inexcusable to go on fishing trips with no basic safety equipment. Photo: Jason Borg
Amateur fishermen are often lulled into a false sense of security that makes them skimp on safety instruments, according to a maritime law expert.
Ann Fenech, a lawyer who had been entrusted with the inquiry into the Simshar tragedy four years ago when a fishing boat exploded out at sea leading to the death of three men and a boy, said the main problem was that people accustomed to the sea believed no tragedy could befall them.
She was speaking in the wake of last week’s harrowing experience of a Żabbar man who was rescued almost 48 hours after getting lost at sea in thick fog.
Mario Axiaq went fishing in his 13-foot boat as he had always done for the past 20 years with no safety equipment on board. He headed out from St Thomas Bay in Marsascala towards Hurd’s Bank, a relatively shallow area where large ships often drop anchor for bunkering purposes.
But a blanket of thick fog made him lose direction and instead of sailing towards Malta he sailed further out to sea. Eventually, Mr Axiaq was rescued about 45 nautical miles out, closer to Sicily, two days later.
“Even the world’s best mariner will find problems navigating in fog, let alone with no safety equipment on board,” Dr Fenech said.
She said 45 nautical miles was “a heck of a lot of distance” and insisted amateur fishermen in small craft should not venture towards Hurd’s Bank even though it seemed close to shore. The area is about 10 nautical miles out.
“From my experience in cases like these, the main problem is that people enter a comfort zone believing that no such tragedy could befall them,” she said.
Enthusiasts in small boats can easily get carried away while fishing, she added, making them prone to sail further away from the shore.
After leaving hospital on Saturday Mr Axiaq said his biggest fear was being crushed by a big tanker. It was a justified fear given the small size of his craft but Dr Fenech insisted that in such circumstances radar would have been an important tool.
“It helps you see the navigation traffic around you, which is indispensible, especially in fog where visibility is very bad,” she said, adding that a VHF radio was also important to signal distress.
But nothing beats the good old fashioned compass, she added. It could have helped Mr Axiaq navigate towards Malta rather than mistakenly sail in an opposite direction.
It was the same advice given by veteran fisherman and president of the National Fisheries Cooperative, Ray Bugeja, when talking to The Sunday Times. Double food rations, a compass and a satellite phone were essential for any fisherman, Mr Bugeja said.
Dr Fenech said it was inexcusable even for amateurs to go on fishing trips with no basic safety equipment. There was no safe distance irrespective of how big the boat was.
“My personal gauge is that if you are not within swimming distance from shore it will be irresponsible to go out any further without safety equipment,” she noted.
A long way out
A indicates St Thomas Bay in Marsascala from where Mario Axiaq left.
B is the approximate location of Hurd’s Bank, some 10 nautical miles out, where the fisherman had told his family he would be fishing.
Red dots indicate the approximate location, about 45 nautical miles to Malta’s north east, where Mr Axiaq’s wondering boat was spotted. The distance between Malta and Sicily (shown in the top part of the map) is approximately 60 nautical miles.
Source: Google maps
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42 Comments
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Nick Palmer
Sep 25th 2012, 07:41
@Dr Fenech - Perhaps you could leverage the MCA to take on the responsability of registering Satellite Personal Locator Beacons here in Malta. As I understand it, neither the MCA nor the AFM are willing to take on the database, forcing safety conscious boaters to register their device with the UK 406 EPIRB Registry (UK Maritime and Coastguard Agency) who luckily still allow us to register.
A full size EPIRB which can be registered locally is an overkill for pleasure boaters or Amateur fishermen. At circa €250 a PLB like the McMurdo FastFind is not only a life saver for the person in distress, but saves on Rescue resources and tax payer's money.
Charles Muscat
Sep 25th 2012, 01:16
But why this happens in Malta? I have a boat where I live in Sydney and there is no way I will take a boat trip if not everything is accordingly and I will be petrified if I'm not because of NSW maritime.
We all have to go to a Boating Safety Course with a Certificate of Completion before having a boat license.
DR EMMANUEL BEZZINA,MA,MAG.JUR.[EU Law],LL.D.,
Sep 24th 2012, 20:04
That is one basic rule long taught to me: when out at sea, NEVER EVER forget to take with you a reliable compass..........that is what I always do and that rule never failed when it became necessary to apply.
Carmelo Azzopardi
Sep 24th 2012, 16:51
For all those commenting here and don't even know what being on a boat means. Rules that regulate boating exist and there is also a list of items that by law one needs to have on his boat when venturing out at sea. Just , next time before you forward your comments spend some time to go into the Transport Malta site maritime section and read the regulations. There are patrols done to check that boaters abide by these rules. These are done by AFM boats, by the Transport Malta dinghies and now by the fisheries department as well. I have been stopped a couple of times by them to check that I have everything in order . But unfortunately people some times take risks, risks that might cost you your live or if you are lucky might give you the scare of your life to you and to your relatives and friends. In such circumstances one can never say that on his boat he has everything necessary to keep him immune of such mishaps, but the more precautions the better.
Wally Vella-Zarb
Sep 24th 2012, 15:57
With all due respect, one wonders what made Mr Sansone decide to seek advice/opinion/guidance from a 'marine law expert' in preference to a proper, qualified Master Mariner who has the knowledge, the experience, the scars...someone who has "been there, done that, got the Tee-shirt".
Pule' Carmel
Sep 24th 2012, 16:16
I agree. I like the bit when she said,".....Dr Fenech insisted that in such circumstances radar would have been an important tool." on a 13 foot boat!!
Now that is an example of what I had to put up with for the last 45 years as a court expert!
Also I like it when the Magistrate or judge says to me, " Professor Pule' could you please describe the situation in words we can understand!" I feel that is an insult to degrade my profession! there are moments which Alber Enstein or Mark Twain described so well. " You can make describe a situation in a simple manner but not any simpler than that!"
Wally Vella-Zarb
Sep 24th 2012, 19:41
I know precisely what you mean, Prof Pule'. I remember one particular case where an operator of a spinning lathe had his finger sliced by the spun metal (the flared bell-mouth of a brass musical instrument). Now you and I know that a lathe is "torn" in Maltese. What emerged on the official transcript referred to "Il-magna tat-tonn"! Fortunately for me and my sanity I managed to keep myself out of the system. ;-)
Pule' Carmel
Sep 25th 2012, 08:16
Mr Vella-Zarb, but the ultimate in stupidity at the courts was when a prominent Engineer in Malta was asked by a lawyer, " And please tell me why you wanted a 50 Ton crane?" where by this Maltese Engineer with a great sense of humour said, " You see Dr, I wanted to raise the power factor of the power station!"
( note the power factor or the power station has noting to do with " Lifting" it is the cosine of the angle between the current and voltage in an Alternating Supply System we normally call AC mains supply)
And you know he got away with it, with all engineers at the Awla crying their eyes out with laughter, all in silence of course!
Charles Sammut. (NY)
Sep 24th 2012, 15:30
I am sure someone else suggested a GPS already. Today the price of the portable units like the Garmin Nuvi went down. I have personally been caught in pea soup fog out there and guessing in these situations is not the way to do it. A compass might work but the Maltese islands are tiny and easy to miss using the compass. Navigation equipment on any fishing boat should be mandatory.
Charles Muscat
Sep 25th 2012, 12:28
In Sydney the SA1-G EPIRB is very popular comes with 10 years battery warranty. Very precise in case of an emergency and we must have it by law.
Robert Caruana
Sep 24th 2012, 14:11
While there is no justification or excuse for going out to sea without safety equipment, it is also important that we do not over-react. With a simple compass or GPS costing less than 100 euros, Mr Axiaq could have avoided all this.
Dr Fenech talks anout radar - this simply is not feasible for small boats. No 13 foot boat is designed to be fitted with radar equipment. So much so that Maltese fishing regulations only require radar for boats venturing more than 25 nautical miles away from the shore - certainly not the job for boats less than 20 foot long, which by law are restricted to Maltese territorial waters (12 nautical miles).
In the case of small boats used within Maltese territorial waters a bilge pump, a life ring, the appropriate flares, a VHF a compass and a simple hand held GPS are sufficient in terms of basic safety equipment. Most of these are required by law (not the compass or GPS though) if the boat is registered as a fishing vessel but not if it is registered as a recreational craft (S registration). If people want to go far offshore (but within 12 miles - you will be breaking the law with a small boat if you venture further) an EPIRB can also be carried for more peace of mind - these have become smaller and more affordable.
Mr Tony Gatt
Sep 24th 2012, 14:58
A radar reflector- which requires no power- is very useful, because in any kind of sea small craft are difficult to spot on radar.
Wally Vella-Zarb
Sep 24th 2012, 15:46
Capt Gatt, while agreeing that 'something' is better than nothing I would say that, given the LOA of a typical frejgatina, it is highly improbable that a passive reflector can be hoisted high enough to give a usable blip, even if it is a standard 18" octahedral correctly swung in the 'catch-water' position. Since height cannot be easily achieved, chances are that any reflection is likely to be lost in the surface clutter. IMO the octa is the only passive reflector that works and I have no sea-space for those silly little pencil-like tubes that other yachtsmen seem so fond of. Much better, IMHO, is an active Radar Target Enhancer which gives out a strong signal when it is triggered by a radar beam. They are less susceptible to elevation or to heeling and are now available also in dual-beam. Costs have now come down appreciably and are affordable to many; they do, however, require a 12-volt supply.
Mr Tony Gatt
Sep 24th 2012, 20:47
@Wally Vella Zarb
I bow to you superior knowledge in the matter of small craft. I never had much of an inkling in my forty years 'at sea' to go out in anything smaller than about 100 ft. long!
Pule' Carmel
Sep 24th 2012, 14:06
It was a Magnetic compass and the observation of current on the sufri tal lampuki that saved me.
I did use the North Star but this does not give you the drift, neither if you are above or below Malta, so please watch out for the current by looking at anything that is held to the ground like sufri tal lampuki or the sinjali tal konzijiet.
Wilf Podesta
Sep 24th 2012, 13:57
The Malta Maritime authority should make sure that when renewing boat licences all boat owners undergo a course of rules of the road, survial/ safety at sea, basic navigation and of course have safety equipment - flares, compass, VHF, emergency pack.
Important is a zinc bucket not a plastic bucket as if he had no flares, then he could have burnt any combustable material to mark his location and keep warm if in a coler season. Another thing he had an awning with the use of an oar he could have easily fashioned a makeshift sail and sailed back.
Also - a sea anchor would have stopped his drift.
No sea anchor - no problem in reducing drag, a knot in each trouser leg, pass a rope where the belt goes and fill with sea water - leave in the water and tie the trousers to the prow of the boat.
Pule' Carmel
Sep 24th 2012, 16:25
I do not think he drifted as a result of wind. I believe he motored in the wrong direction and the sea current took him with it. A sea Anchor will not work with sea currents, only high winds.
You are so right about the makeshift sail.
Peter Murray
Sep 24th 2012, 18:16
A sea anchor (drogue)will work with sea currents .By what authority do you make such reckless claims Mr Pule?
Pule' Carmel
Sep 24th 2012, 19:21
Assuming there is no wind, the sea anchor will move at the same velocity of the surface craft on the surface of sea current so there will be no relative velocity between the sea anchor and the sea craft in question. It is as simple as that.
A sea anchor will hold when it is dynamic and it will slow you down if the wind blows and caused drag on the boat. Without a sea anchor on a windy day the craft will move so much faster. A sea anchor will increase the drag. Please note that I am referring to the sea anchor as Wilf Podesta referred to with closing a pair of trousers, though I do not fully agree with him " pass a rope where the belt goes! " It is not as simple as that !
Perhaps four ropes coming to a point far ahead of the trousers so that the waist would open up as a "sock " as found in any airport!
Wally Vella-Zarb
Sep 24th 2012, 20:09
Further to Prof Pule's explanation about the necessity of wind for a drogue to work properly one would point out to Mr Murray that the incident in question involved a small open boat. This has nowhere near enough windage for the drogue to work. At best a drogue (actually a series of drogues) can only keep my sailing boat - with the windage provided by a thirteen metre mast,complete with rigging, coach roof and a midships free board of more than a metre - head to wind. Unless the vessel is already being blown along by the wind, a drogue will not deploy and inflate and will simply hang down like a wet flag.
The drogue can come into its own as a means for slowing a boat that is either running under bare poles before an approaching front or else to keep the boat bows-to the oncoming short steep seas that would otherwise empty themselves into the cockpit.
BTW Mr Murray, and before you ask. I do not speak with any 'authority'; only through having actually been through it after losing both rudders on a catamaran. (Prout Snowgoose prototype).
Pule' Carmel
Sep 25th 2012, 13:26
If high waves are coming from behind and overtaking you , this is the most dangerous situation as the boat will almost plane, but you need a very bid rudder to keep the boat straight as if the bow end of theboat is too narrow with little reserve buoyancy, the boat will broach and could easily capsise. It is certaininly a most dangerous tack going downwind, especially with a big sail and a penertrating bow end. In this case I found that using a drouge or a sea anchor will help in avoiding broaching, anything will do as you need drag to help the rudder in this case when the wave uplifts the transom and the nose diggs and the transom starts rotating, if the rudder is not big enough the drouge or sea cnchor will come into action at that time, stopping the boat from rotating with the wave. It is the most interesting dynamics and danger in any boat! Watch our for boraching with rear waves coming at you,, as the boat meets the trough the nose goes up and the boat slows down as there is an uphill ahead of it, when on top of the crest still behing you with the wave passing under, the nose of the boat goes down and it starts accelerating fast, here if the nose digs and the transom keep lifting, well try and pray a little that the rudder will have enugh area to hold it , otherwise use a seaanchor, it will give you generous help.
Sammy Vella
Sep 24th 2012, 12:20
Everyone is talking about the good old compass. Yes the good old compass is a great help, but what nopbody is talking about and not thinking is that;
1) the good old compass will still mislead you especially on smaller boats. What is a compass if it is not calibered? A compass is always deviated with the magnetic field of the metal (engine etc) on a small boat. No matter how much you swing the compass ( has to be done by a qualified Compass Adjuster) an error possibly of many degrees is still there. So no use having the good old compass.
2) What is the use of a compass without a nautical navigational chart, dividers and paralell rules and deviation Card and of course a chart table. These are imossible to have on a boat of a few meters such as 4 mt or so.
It is easy for Inexperienced people to yap yap just for the sake of saying something. Being on maritime inquieries does not make you a seaman/woman. ONLY years of seagoing experience and nautical studies makes you a seaman/woman
On such small craft what is recommened is A GPS, VHF (DSC) marine radio, set of distress flares and an EPIRB. Nothing is better at this time of electronics, as well as of course attending a nautical lisence course (for those unexperienced), and of course a small first aid kit and lifejackets
paul camilleri
Sep 24th 2012, 14:33
and someone of authority to make sure that everything is on board as it should be
D Vella
Sep 24th 2012, 15:12
Sammy,
not even an all metal boat will make a compass needle swing by 90 degrees which is more or less the error made by Mr. Axiaq in trying to exit the fog . . . even with a deviation of a few degrees, at a mere distance of five miles from the mainland it would have pointed him largely in the right direction until he could see land . . .
Pule' Carmel
Sep 24th 2012, 16:33
My experience is that the Magnetic compass will not have much aberrations with a engine and anyway most engines these days are aluminium except for the crankshaft!
Here is an interesting idea. If you sail from Sicily or any closer distance and you do not know what direction is the sea current, it is much safer not to aim directly at Malta but it is better to overshoot Marsaxlokk and said towards beyond Marsaxlokk then you MAKE SURE THAT YOU ARE ON THE Marsaxlokk side . Then after you motor enough to bring you close to malta you do a right angle turn towards Malta. This is safer than sailing towards Malta without knowing the sea current as you would not know if you drifted towards Cirkewwa or marsaxlokk.
Sammy Vella
Sep 24th 2012, 16:35
@ Paul camilleri.. Are there any Marine qualified and experienced Inspectors within the Authority's Ports Directorate? None
@ D Vella.. with Malta being such a small island a five-degree error as you suggested is enough to get u off land let alone many more degrees which unswung Magnetic Compassed usually have on such small boats especially considering they are fitted so close to the engine/motor
Mr Tony Gatt
Sep 24th 2012, 20:53
@ Pule' Carmel
This is exactly the technique we used to use to approach the Orinoco where our 'target' was a buoy which was out of sight of land at the mouth of the river. This was before satnavs. of course. I never actually saw a satnav until I retired!
Jay Oatmon
Sep 24th 2012, 11:41
Obviously this man was simply stupid and too lazy to take even simple precautions for the last 20 years - he nearly paid the ultimate price:-
"Mario Axiaq went fishing in his 13-foot boat as he had always done for the past 20 years with no safety equipment on board.
R. Azzopardi
Sep 24th 2012, 13:34
It's just the typical "it won't happen to me" attitude. If you were to speak to this gentleman he would say that he doesn't venture out far ("who me go out far? I just go out for a quick fishing spin near the ships (of course he has no idea that it's called hurd's bank), catch something for dinner and head home")
Peter Murray
Sep 24th 2012, 11:13
Complacency is allowed to be fuelled and endorsed by indequate,lax and non-enforced legislation
Peter Murray
Sep 24th 2012, 10:28
Contary to what the learned lawyer opines as in "Even the world's best mariner would find problems navigating in fog" is not appropriate nor is it accurate!As with towards many navigation aids fog is not an issue -as fire is the gretaest danger to any sailor.Did the fisherman have any fire0fighting equipment on board?
Mr Tony Gatt
Sep 24th 2012, 15:09
I've been in many 'pea soupers' (as thick fog is sometimes called) and on the Grand Banks, with bits of ice as an added attraction. With proper equipment safe navigation is always within reach of the experienced mariner. But this is a different kettle of fish. What was needed was common sense.
Peter Murray
Sep 24th 2012, 18:13
Agree absoultely sir ,but common-sense is a great misnomer .As ,sad to say, sense isn't very common at all and I still maintain that fire is much more of an enemy to a seaman than fog
Victor Laiviera
Sep 24th 2012, 10:15
"Wondering" about what?
Mr Tony Gatt
Sep 24th 2012, 09:56
People who pointed this out yesterday got a lot of 'stick' for not being charitable etc. etc. but at the end of the day we are all responsible for our own actions. From my time at sea I have seen a fair mount of this sort of thing. The RNLI in the U.K. spends most of its time rescuing people in yachts who have no fear of the sea simply because they have no knowledge of the dangers inherent in sailing out in small boats.
Having said all that I'm glad the incident ended in a good outcome.
Joe Fenech
Sep 24th 2012, 10:45
Yes, I got stick when I pointed this out when there was the canoe accident.
Being charitable does not mean being silly.
paul camilleri
Sep 24th 2012, 09:54
these boats should go through safty checks every summer before they can put their boats in the water, something similar to VRT, this would certainly make sure that every boat would have certain navigatoinal equipment installed as well as an emergency pack containing first aid box, bottled water, biscuits , blanket and a flare gun.
E Schembri
Sep 24th 2012, 11:04
The current nautical license course has ample of information about safety and its importance. To my knowledge, compass, flares, vhf, fire extinguisher and life jackets are required by law, even though no penalties apply if you are caught with out them. But these are the basics for any boat.
The only issue is that it applies to boats with an engine capacity of 30Hp and over.
I guess it is time to enforce this license and course to all motor and sailing boat.
Charles Muscat
Sep 24th 2012, 11:56
Including a boat beacon.
Sammy Vella
Sep 24th 2012, 12:05
Are you trying to be holier than thou Mr. Camilleri?? Everyone is responsible of his/her own life and for his/her actions. As if we r not paying enough bills and lisences and as if we do not have enough restrictions.. Your suggestion is what we neeed. Every seaman/ angler/fishing enthusiast knows well enough what he should carry with him and what the limitations of his/her boat are.
With all respect it seems that you haven't ever been on a boat at her moorings, let alone being experienced at sea.
Less talk would be much more beneficial to all involved
Jessica Smith
Sep 24th 2012, 12:16
Sammy Vella it seems not. Perhaps instead of inspections as suggested by Paul Camilleri patrol boats could stop any boat for inspection and if the safety items are not found the owner forfeits his boat and also pays a hefty fine.
R. Azzopardi
Sep 24th 2012, 13:31
@Sammy Vella,
Are you sure that they know well enough? I have serious doubts. This was a classic case. I can assure you that the vast majority of amateur fishermen do not take their safety seriously.
Please choose the reason of your report below: