Pad eye fracture responsible for death on superyacht, coroner concludes
Farfalla courtesy of Southern Wind
An inquest into a professional sailor’s death onboard a superyacht has concluded with a coroner highlighting the need for regular checks and improvements in yacht safety standards.
Sam Richmond, a crew member on the 102ft Southern Wind yacht, Farfalla, was training for the Superyacht Challenge Antigua in March 2022 when a pad eye failed, causing a block — or pulley — to strike him in the head.
Richmond, pictured above, died two days later at Broward Health Medical Centre in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
It’s understood this was Farfalla’s debut in the Superyacht Challenge Antigua.
“Fatigue cracking, which had developed over time since the construction of the yacht in 2014,” had caused the pad eye to fracture, the coroner says.
“The fatigue cracking was caused when cyclical forces were applied to the pad eye when the yacht was under sail, and the pad eye was not aligned with the load of the rigging, which reduced the load-carrying capacity of the pad eye.
“The pad eye had an inadequate maximum working load capacity for securing the runner turning block.”
Farfalla is the first SW102 built in the raised saloon version and was designed for both private and charter use. Built by the South African shipyard, Southern Wind (with Farr Yacht Design) Farfalla is cited as the ideal cruising yacht thanks to its spacious deck.
The guest cockpit and sunbathing area aft are united by a centerline corridor that has few gaps or differences in level and is safe to walk along under sail, says the shipyard’s website, with a mainsheet fixed point using a captive winch to allow movement from aft to the guest cockpit. There’s a tender garage for a four-metre dinghy, allowing a clean deck under sail. Typically, it sleeps eight guests plus five crew.
Stringent checks and modifications onboard superyachts
Speaking on behalf of the yacht owners (Red Birdwing), Sam Laidlaw told the inquest that more stringent checks have now been implemented. Pad eyes will be inspected and replaced every two years, and new, stronger titanium fittings are in use.
“The pad eye is genuinely thought to be solid, it’s a very solid piece of metal, you would expect the rigging to fail, or training blocks to fail, but you wouldn’t expect the pad eye to be the weak link,” says Laidlaw.
“I hope lessons will be learnt about rigging design and boat design. There have been modifications to more recent boats, which hopefully will prevent this from happening,” Laidlaw says. “I hope lessons will be learnt and this will never happen again.”
Skipper Richard Chadburn read a statement to the inquest. He says that the block ‘exploded’ into the back of Sam Richmond’s head. A mayday call was issued, the sails brought down and first aid administered. The yacht returned to shore under motor, where Richmond was taken into medical care.
Richmond’s widow told the inquest: “He loved life, he lived every day to the fullest, he was very fortunate to do what he enjoyed most for his living. Sailing was a massive part of his life, he had built a wonderful life for himself. He is hugely missed and he is hugely remembered.”
Remembrance procession held during Superyacht Challenge
On Sunday 13 March 2022, a remembrance procession was observed by all competing yachts in the Superyacht Challenge before the start of the final race of the regatta.
Richmond had started sailing in an Optimist when he was six and continued on to sail 420s and 49ers. His transition from sailing as a hobby to working in the industry started as a sailing instructor in Spain, followed by coaching National Youth Squads.
In 2004, Richmond started racing big boats on the Swan 48 Jacobite, which led to racing worldwide on many different racing boats from Etchells and Quarter Tonners to Superyachts. In 2011, Sam joined North Sails as a salesman dealing primarily with Solent-based racing boat projects.
The image above shows the fleet competing in Antigua in 2022. Image courtesy of Superyacht Challenge Antigua. All other images courtesy of Southern Wind Shipyard.
The yacht won the 2015 World Superyacht ‘Quality & Value’ Award for having ‘an exclusive combination of high quality and good value, providing her owner with the opportunity to cruise the oceans in comfort and safety, as well as the possibility to participate in keenly contested racing.’
