Skipper fined £26,000+ for going wrong way in Dover Strait
After repeatedly heading the wrong way along the south-west Traffic Separation Scheme (TSS), a skipper has been fined a whopping £26,000+.
The skipper, and owner of a day angling vessel Reel Fun 2, was travelling the wrong way along a shipping lane in the Dover Strait on several occasions on 14 September 2022.
Simon Hughes, 64, of Marden in Kent, appeared at Maidstone Magistrates Court where he was ordered to pay a fine of £1,730, victim surcharge of £173 and prosecution costs of £25,000.
At the time, the vessel’s actions prompted HM Coastguard officers at the MRCC (Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre) to try to make contact by radio broadcasts, without response. A rogue vessel warning was broadcast to shipping using the TSS. Contact was only made with Reel Fun 2 after the intervention of a Royal Navy ship.
“Large ships may have difficulty in seeing small vessels using the TSS,” says MCA investigator Mark Flavell. “Failing to comply with the rules may cause confusion on the bridge of large ships resulting in alteration of speed and course. This can have a knock-on effect for other large ships creating an unnecessary hazard to shipping.”
Recently, a mother and son were ordered to pay more than £5,000 for obstructing work of MCA. Rhys Wonnacott prevented MCA surveyors boarding the fishing vessel Provider, moored at Milford Haven Harbour while Louise Wonnacott repeatedly failed to provide the MCA with the required documentation as part of an ongoing investigation after claiming she and Rhys Wonnacott were not responsible for Provider. She did not respond to the MCA for around 7 months – between March and October 2023.
Image courtesy of Maritime and Coastguard Agency via Facebook.
