Southampton boat crash: Emily Lewis died after ‘high-speed manoeuvres’on May 20, 2021 at 1:05 pm

A 15-year-old girl was killed after a boat skipper performed “high-speed manoeuvres” and crashed during a sightseeing trip, a report has said.

Emily Lewis was fatally injured in the excursion, off Southampton, on speedboat Seadogz on 22 August 2020.

The Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) has released an interim report into the crash, in which 11 other people onboard were injured.

“Immediate lessons” could be learned, the MAIB said.

Emily was a pre-booked passenger with her family on the scheduled one-hour trip, which was run by Seadogz Rib Charter Ltd, and departed from Ocean Village marina.

The group was told to expect a fast ride with high-speed turns and the skipper put on loud music about 15 minutes into the trip, the report said.

“During the next 12 minutes Seadogz carried out high-speed manoeuvres up and down Southampton Water, zigzagging across the main channel, passing close to navigation buoys and conducting figure-of-eight turns,” the report said.

It added the boat then crashed head-on into a navigation buoy because the skipper was “concentrating on conducting high-speed manoeuvres in close proximity to another vessel and did not see the fixed navigational mark in time”.

“The skipper was operating single-handedly, at high speed and did not see the navigation buoy, which was directly ahead, for 10 seconds before impact,” the report continued.

The crash caused Emily’s death, while others suffered injuries including broken limbs, fractured vertebrae, dislocations and a punctured lung.

The MAIB said the passengers had not alerted the skipper as they approached the buoy because they had become “accustomed to passing close by large navigation buoys at speed”.

Andrew Moll, the MAIB’s chief inspector of marine accidents, said: “These rides can provide excitement, entertainment and fun, and for this reason they are popular.

“However, this dreadful accident saw nine people sustain very serious injuries and tragically cost the life of a young person.

“As the holiday season approaches, I want to remind operators that they also have a duty of care for their passengers, and safety should not be compromised in pursuit of a thrill.”

A full report will be published when the investigation is complete.

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