Death of creel fisherman after davit failure ruled accidental with no determinable cause 

About this case:

• Citation:
  [2022] FAI 14
• Judgment:
  External link
• Court:
  Sheriff Court
• Judge:
  Sheriff Alastair Brown

Alexander Wood, who was aged 65 at the time of his death, was a self-employed creel fisherman working out of Burntisland. Mr Wood’s family chose not to actively participate in the inquiry under the Fatal Accidents and Sudden Deaths etc (Scotland) Act 2016. 

The inquiry was conducted by Sheriff Alastair Brown. Ms Swansey, procurator fiscal depute, appeared for the public interest and the harbour operator, Forth Ports Ltd, was represented by Mr Craig, solicitor. 

Broke in two 

At the time of Mr Wood’s death, he was working out of the outer part of Burntisland Harbour with a 24-foot fishing boat. He suffered from severe coronary artery disease and minimal ischemic heart disease which left him at an increased risk of dysrhythmic events. The cause of his death was officially recorded as by immersion in water with ischemic heart disease. 

At the top of the quay at the outer harbour was a davit that was permanently fixed to the harbour by its base plate. It was not known who installed the davit. On 24 August 2018, while Mr Wood was using the davit to load bait onto his boat, the davit’s vertical projecting tube broke in two, causing the lifting arm and the box of bait to fall directly onto his boat. At about the same time that the arm fell onto the boat, Mr Wood fell into the water and sustained a fracture to his right arm consistent with being hit by a heavy object. At the time of his death, Mr Wood was not wearing a life jacket. 

After the accident, it was discovered that the steel projecting tube, around which the lifting arm had rotated, was heavily corroded in an area below the visible outer piping. It was observed that any reasonable inspection by a competent person would have resulted in the discovery of the defect, but no proper inspection of the davit had taken place in several years. 

Evidence was given by witnesses to the accident as well as by the Chief Operating Officer of Forth Ports Ltd, Stuart Wallace. He stated that Forth Ports had not used the outer harbour in some time and regarded its use by local residents as their own responsibility. Following Mr Wood’s death, they commenced a review across their seven harbours to identify other items of third-party equipment and instruct the owners to either maintain or remove it. 

Various hypotheses 

In his determination, Sheriff Brown began: “It is beyond doubt that Mr Wood met his death in an accident and that it involved the failure of the davit; but it is not possible to determine at this stage what the mechanism of that accident was or what part the davit played. Various hypotheses can be advanced but the evidence does not point to any one of them being more likely than another.” 

On where responsibility for the davit lay, he observed: “There is a strong argument that the davit had become the property of Forth Ports Ltd by accession. A range of criteria are considered in determining such a question. In this case, the fixture might well be described as permanent, in view of the difficulty experienced in removing the base plate.” 

He continued: “However, the fact that the mechanism of the accident cannot be ascertained - in particular, that I cannot say that the failure of the davit was causally connected with Mr Wood’s death - means that I do not have to decide the question. In addition, it is arguable that Forth Ports Ltd had certain duties arising from their control of the outer harbour; but for the same reason, I do not have to decide that.” 

Addressing whether there was a causal connection between the failure of the davit and Mr Brown’s death, Sheriff Brown said: “I make no recommendations. I have drawn the inference that the failure of the davit which was installed on the quay at Burntisland Outer Harbour occurred at or about the same time as Mr Wood entered the water but it is not possible to reach any conclusion about whether or what part it played in the events which led to Mr Wood’s death.” 

He concluded: “Forth Ports have acted responsibly. They have carried out a review across their whole Scottish estate to determine whether there were any other pieces of equipment installed by third parties and to either remove any such equipment or ensure that it is maintained properly. The conducting of such a review is the only recommendation which might conceivably have been appropriate. Since it has already been conducted, to make such a recommendation would be redundant.”