1997 Accident settlement-reposted from elsewhere...

[jagfish]

This is a settlement from a 1997 accident. Was also posted in accidents and incidents...

Court orders scuba instructor, travel agent to pay $430,000 for diver fatality
Powered by CYBER DIVER News Network
by LUTHER MONROE and AKI MORI
TOKYO, Japan (26 Nov 2004) -- In yet another bizarre decision by a Japanese judge, a scuba instructor and a travel agent have been ordered to pay US$430,000 in damages to the family of a diver who died in 1997 after being run over by a dive boat operated by a fisherman.

The victim, a 46-year-old Japanese female resident of Tokyo, was on a dive tour to Mikomoto Island off the southeast coast of Izu Peninsula. She was fatally struck in the head by the propeller of another dive boat while ascending to the surface after completing a dive.

Relatives of the victim had filed a US$1.2 million lawsuit accusing the dive instructor and travel agent of negligence for not adequately informing divers of proper ascent procedures in an area that gets heavy boat traffic.

Takafumi Okuda, the presiding judge in the case, ruled that the victim was 30 percent responsible, and the dive instructor and dive travel agent were 70 percent responsible for the death.

"The instructor and others involved knew that boats were in the area, but they were not attentive enough," Okuda said. "The dive instructor should have instructed the divers to carefully look around the area before telling them to surface."

While Judge Okuda severely punished a dive instructor and a dive travel agent who did not actually participate in the dive, he somehow managed to completely overlook the fishing/whaling industry boat captain who actually ran over and killed the diver.

Dive boats in Japan are typically operated by local fishing boat captains who have no professional diver training but are members of regional fishing industry coops that have been linked to organized crime gangs.

 

[dcpac]

The fishman yakuza probally paid the judge off. They all suck but the fisherman really suck.

 

[Henryville]

Any idea who the instructor was with or who the agency was? Easy to envision this happening there with waves and divers popping up all over the place. Maybe TJO can develop a market for those Super Alert Markers that Halcyon makes!

 

[nori1841]

All persons involved had negligence liabilities includes victims.

Captain A ;
A had serious faults due to aggressive operation although he knew a presence of divers near his boat.
,because he was informed via radio from captain B beforehand but his boat crashed into the victims after unloading his guests.
The suit against him had been cancelled due to his death.

Captain B ;
B had also faults because he didn't inform A who was still approaching to the surfacing point continuously.
B had negligence of lacked lookout as well.
B paid Y500,000 as professional negligence decided by minor court and he paid Y10000,000 as settlement package to relatives before this judgement.

Female was OpenWater diver and had 30 tanks of experience.
Male serious injured was also OW and had around 10 tanks.
Both of them were certified by the tour company(diving school)

Female was begginer but she had basic skills therefore she had to watch the surface
and control buoyancy by herselves so 30% of rating blame is determined.

This was a professional guided fun dive with 3 DM's(instructors)
and 7 guests divided into two groups.
Instructor C is certified NASDS and others are NASDS and CMAS.
C had 500 tanks in this area.
C was using only massive bubbles intentionally exhausted by him as come-up signal.(*1)
C gave a surfacing sign to the guests from 14.6m after confirmed the surface cleared.
Two victims were not able to control ascent speed.
C gave attentions to them but they failed stopping.
C purged air from their BCD's by himself and he realized the bottom of ship at 4-5m.
C tried to escape pulling victims but crashed into the bottom.

Captain A did not notice the noise of 1st crash to the bottom and intentional tap noise by C.
A started to move his boat toward right side.
This action caused the accident hit by water screw with two guests.
A must pay attention to the bubbles and the noise from the bottom.
C must take safety stop intentionally to check the surface in 3-5m.(*2)
And he must use a signaling float or a marker buoy but he didn't have both.

my comments;

Off course, A signaling float was required and common tool at least for DM's at that time.
The sea condition was good and visibility was also good around 10m.
This area has been well known as diving point.
Both captain A and B belonged to local diving association and B was acting as a fisherman in addition.
It's said that victims wore dry suits.

 

[jagfish]

Thanks for the furthrer clarification of this incident, Nori.

I wonder if in Japan it is possible to continue the suit against a person's estate, such as in the case of the boat Captain who died.

 

[nori1841]

Thanks for the furthrer clarification of this incident, Nori.

I wonder if in Japan it is possible to continue the suit against a person's estate, such as in the case of the boat Captain who died.

Yes, it is possible.

But a heir to the estate can waive all rights includes both a debit and an asset.
His heirs did so.

 

[jagfish]

smart move...

 

[Kim]

Nori's post explains why the boat Captain wasn't prosecuted - it doesn't explain about the travel agent as far as I can see. Does anyone know why he was also held responsible?

 

[nori1841]

Nori's post explains why the boat Captain wasn't prosecuted - it doesn't explain about the travel agent as far as I can see. Does anyone know why he was also held responsible?

Both travel agent and the guide are resposible for the accident because both can not avoid responsibilities from viewpoint of risks of scuba diving even the tour oriented to OW divers.
Both are still responsibile for safety ensuring.
The travel agent hired the guide and hold the tour so the agent is also responsible as the promoter.

 

[Kim]

Thanks Nori. Would the travel agent be able to sue the dive op separately given that he has hired the dive op to provide a service which they haven't done properly?