Captain detained after deadly collision between merchant vessel and recreational boat

The captain of the Norwegian-flagged merchant vessel Misje Verde has been detained on suspicion of causing death by negligence following a collision with a small recreational boat. The incident, which occurred on the evening of July 28, resulted in the deaths of a woman and a child, though another man and child were successfully rescued.

The detained captain, a Russian national in his 50s, denies the charges. His lawyer, Taavi Tuula, stated that the captain's defense is based on details currently under investigation secrecy, preventing further public disclosure. The lawyer also declined to comment on whether the captain had spoken about the Swedish pilot who was on board the vessel at the time of the incident. The pilot has been removed from duty and offered crisis support, reportedly being deeply affected by the event.

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His stance rests on circumstances covered by the preliminary investigation secrecy, so I cannot account for them now.

According to the prosecution, the Misje Verde, a bulk carrier, overtook the 7.6-meter-long motorboat in the fairway before colliding with it. The vessel had departed from Uddevalla at 7:00 PM with the pilot on board, who was scheduled to disembark near the Hätteberget lighthouse. At the time of the collision, shortly before 9:30 PM, the ship was traveling at a speed of 12.1 to 12.3 knots. In the prevailing dark and rainy conditions, the margin for error was extremely small, especially given the close proximity of the vessels.

Rescuers were alerted around 10:02 PM by a couple who heard cries for help and a whistle from a nearby cove. The rescued man and child had been in the water for at least thirty minutes before being pulled out by the couple. By the time the Coast Guard arrived, two other individuals, a woman and a child, were still missing. A search operation was launched, but by 2:15 AM, conditions were deemed unsuitable for finding survivors. The search resumed the following day, and divers later found the bodies of the missing woman and child, one near the sunken boat and the other further away. The legal proceedings have now commenced.

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The margins are, in other words, small – especially when it is dark and raining heavily.