Joanna C tragedy: Fishermen's deaths were accidental

Robert Morley was one of two fisherman who died when the Joanna C capsized and sank in November 2020.

A report by the Marine Accident Investigation Board (MAIB) earlier this year found that the 38-year-old ship's mate was flung into the cold water when the Joanna C capsized.

Joanna C at sea. Picture: MAIB report, courtesy of Joanna C’s owner (Image: MAIB report, courtesy of Joanna C’s owner)

The captain, David Bickerstaff, found him in the water and the pair were able to see ‘the lights of other fishing vessels nearby’.

Robert’s life jacket came off after David attempted to untangle him from a length of rope.

The pair were clinging to a lifebuoy, but before he could be rescued, Robert ‘succumbed to the cold and drifted away, leaving the skipper holding on to the lifebuoy’.

Mr Morley, 38, lived with his family in Llangolman and Clarbeston Road, but worked away on fishing boats for long stretches.

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He was described by one local resident as a 'doting dad' and a 'kind, loveable geezer'.

The local community rallied round after the tragedy, raising funds for the family and doing what they could to support them.

Robert Morley was described as a 'doting dad' and a 'kind loveable geezer' (Image: The Argus)

The inquest heard that deckhand Adam Harper 26, drowned after he was trapped in the vessel and went down with the boat.

Only the captain, David Bickerstaff survived.

After its investigation the MAIB published a safety flyer to the fishing industry highlighting the lessons to be learnt from the Joanna C tragedy.

Its investigations had revealed that multiple moderations to the boat over many years had affected its stability, and that the vessel’s life raft - a model intended for use in the leisure industry - did not inflate and come to the surface.

MAIB inspector Joanna Dorman told the jury inquest, held at Muriel House in Hastings, that the failure of the life raft to inflate ‘had an adverse effect on the chance of surviving’.

A dive survey discovered the Joanna C's uninflated life raft. Picture: MAIB report (Image: MAIB)

She added that the vessel’s stability was below the level it should have been, leaving it vulnerable to capsizing.

The jury returned a verdict of accidental death for both Robert and Adam.

a survey image of the wreck of Joanna C. MAIB report, courtesy of Trinity House. (Image: MAIB report courtesy of Trinity House)

Speaking after the hearing Robert’s mother Jackie Woolford told ITV: “I don’t think we will ever get the truth and we’ll never get all the answers that we want.”

She said that she hoped the conclusion of the inquest would mean that no one else would have to go through what she and her family have gone through.

“It’s the most dangerous job in the world but hopefully by doing this it can be a little bit safer. At least they get half a chance on the boats when they’re safe.”