Fisherman without beacon in drowning

A fisherman who drowned after falling over board would have had significantly higher chances of surviving if he had been wearing a lifejacket and carrying a personal locator beacon, a report has found.

Michael Monk ,57, the owner/skipper of the single -handed creel fishing boat May C, was found faced own an dun conscious in the sea off Benbecula by the crew of the fishing boat Sparkling Star around 12:30pm on 24 July last year.

They put out a Mayday then managed to get hold of Mr Monk, but could not pull him on board. They instead manoeuvred him on to the walkway of a nearby fish farm cage where they started cardio-pulmonary resuscitation. However, he did not respond. On the advice of the coastguard, the Sparkling Star’s crew took the skip per to Loch Car nan fuel jetty where an ambulance was waiting, but he could not be revived and was pronounced dead.

A Marine Accident Investigation Branch( MA I B) report said the exact circumstances of the accident were unknown as the skipper, who could not swim, was alone on the boat.

The report said :“Alone and not equipped with a personal locator beacon, the skipper was also unable to raise the alarm and summon help.”