Sky TV chief in speedboat horror had been drinking before he took the wheel from wife
A TV executive and his eight-yearold daughter were killed by their speedboat after he took the steering wheel from his wife and accelerated, catapulting the family of six into the water, investigators found.
Nick Milligan, who had drunk some wine but was well below the drink-drive limit, had been steering but swapped places with his wife Victoria – and detached the ‘kill cord’ which stops the power if the driver is thrown.
She then took control without attaching the cord and was encouraged by her family to do another run around the Camel Estuary in north Cornwall, the official accident report said. Mrs Milligan had begun a slow, wide turn when her husband sitting next to her reached over, took the helm and opened the throttle of the 300hp engine to execute a tighter turn.
The Cobra rigid inflatable called Milly rolled violently, tossing the couple and their four children into the water.
Mr Milligan, 51, a senior executive at Sky Media, and his daughter Emily were killed by the propellers as the unmanned and out of control boat circled the family under full power.
Mrs Milligan, 39, lost part of a leg and their five-year- old son Kit suffered ‘life-changing’ wounds in the accident off Padstow last May Bank Holiday weekend.
The couple’s two other children, Amber, 12, and Olivia, 11, escaped with minor injuries largely thanks to water sports instructor Charlie Toogood who jumped on board from his own boat and cut the power.
Yesterday the Milligan family said in a statement: ‘ We are still coming to terms with this tragic accident which has left us without Nick, a loving hus- band, father, son and brother, and Emily, whose life was only just beginning.
‘ We sincerely hope that awareness of this accident will mean that another family does not have to go through anything similar.’
A report by the Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) said: ‘Mr Milligan who was in the co-driver position suggested that they should turn to starboard for another run. Due to encouragement from the children and Mr Milligan she [Mrs Milligan] began a slow wide turn.
‘Mr Milligan then reached across in front of his wife, took the helm in his right hand and the throttle in his left, and then increased the engine throttle setting to full as he turned the helm to starboard.
‘The boat immediately accelerated and heeled into the turn and then suddenly and violently rolled back to port and
‘Circled back towards them’
ejected all its occupants out over the port side and into the water. The boat then continued to circle under full power.
‘The family were on the surface of the water, supported by their lifejackets and buoyancy aids, and the boat circled back towards them, striking several of them.’
The family from Wandsworth, south-west London, own a £2million home in Trebetherick, north of the exclusive Cor- nish resort of Rock. Mr Milligan bought the speedboat in 2012.
At 12.25pm on May 5 last year the family boarded Milly at Rock and headed towards Polzeath before performing a number of laps around the bay at around 30 knots.
Just after 2pm the family pulled into Padstow where most disembarked for lunch while Mr Milligan remained on the boat and drank some wine.
After lunch the family set out again with Mr Milligan at the helm and the cut-off cord attached. Eight minutes later they stopped and Mrs Milligan took the helm, without attaching the kill cord. She was heading back towards Rock when they decided to do another ‘run’ up the bay towards Gun Point and the tragedy happened.
Investigators said both Mr Milligan and his wife had the relevant training to operate a powerboat and knew how to use a kill cord. Mr Milligan’s alcohol level was well below the UK’s drink-drive limit.
The report stated: ‘The turn to starboard which led to the ejection was initiated by Mrs Milligan but Mr Milligan almost immediately reached across his wife and took control of the helm. It is likely that he did this because he thought that a tighter turn to starboard was required to keep Milly clear of the beach on the Padstow side of the estuary.
‘The manner in which Mr Milligan took the helm appears to have been out of character as he was known to be a safetyconscious and prudent individual.’
The MAIB made a series of recommendations, including an urgent reminder for speedboat users to use kill cords at all times and to test them regularly.