Akill cord and lifejacket are useless unless worn–that’s the warning from the Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB), following its investigation into a powerboat crash that killed a 32-year-old woman and five-year-old girl on 2 October 2022.
The 37ft offshore powerboat Awesome was returning in the evening to East End Dock on the British Virgin Islands (BVI) when a sudden mechanical failure caused the boat to lose steering control, veer to starboard, then roll violently to port, ejecting 10 of the 11 people on board into the water. The MAIB, which conducted the investigation on behalf of the BVI Government, concluded that the monohull powerboat’s single-stepped hull, which is designed to reduce drag, lost its grip on the water when it veered sharply to starboard at high speed, which induced a lateral slide that stopped abruptly as the keel gripped the water, triggering a violent roll.
Awesome reared up in the air and landed back in the water on its transom, partially sinking. The air trapped in the forward cabin held the boat briefly afloat vertically, before it sank over the next five to 10 minutes.
The mechanical defect was attributed to a failed yoke on the aftmost universal joint on the port driveshaft; the flailing driveshaft then severed a steering system hydraulic hose, resulting in a complete loss of pressure and steering.
The MAIB commissioned an independent expert to inspect the universal joints on the failed port driveshaft, and the intact starboard driveshaft. He concluded the coupling failure was due to excessive wear caused by a lack of lubrication over a prolonged period.
Casualty recovery
The powerboat was travelling at around 60mph at the time. The sea state was calm and there was little wind. The crew of accompanying boat Shalom, along with local fishermen and the skipper and guests on a charter boat, assisted in the search and recovery of Awesome’s owner and passengers. Nine people were quickly located and taken ashore, many were taken to a local hospital for treatment.
Brianna Graham, 5, was found a short
