Tragic death of Wolfgang Schroeder
Posted on | August 26, 2010 | 1 Comment
It was sad to hear of the recent deaths of three leisure fishermen who were lost when their 25ft craft caught fire and sank off Bantry Bay in Ireland. A fourth occupant of the boat survived although injured , and was rescued by helicopter.
One of the fatalities, whose name will strike bells in the memory of mariners throughout the world, was Captain Wolfgang Schroeder, who had been master of the containership Zim Mexico III, which knocked down a container crane when manoeuvring in Mobile, Alabama in March 2006, killing an electrician who had been working on the gantry. Charged under the ancient Seaman’s Manslaughter Act , allegedly because he had failed to alert a pilot about a deficient bow thrusters, (despite this equipment working perfectly on more than fifty occasions since the previous failure), the master was held in custody from October 2006 to February 07, when he was sentenced for the lesser crime of negligence to “time served” and given 72 hours to leave the country.
The incident was widely regarded by mariners throughout the world as a major injustice and symptomatic of the modern tendency to criminalise professionals involved in any sort of marine incident. Testimonials to the character and professionalism of the German master poured into the court, while mariners’ organisations from the US and around the world protested at the treatment of a master with more than 40 years service. Among the many testimonials were references to the important part Captain Schroeder had played during the rescue in Zeebrugge following the capsize of the ferry Herald of Free Enterprise, when he was in command of a freight ferry near the scene of the disaster, and earned the praise of UK PM Margaret Thatcher and the King of the Belgians.
Captain Schroeder, who had impressed with his dignity after his trial, returned home to Ireland, where he resided. His ordeal continues to be cited by mariners as one of the many examples of injustice attaching to people commanding modern merchant ships. Such cases continue unabated.
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August 30th, 2010 @ 3:07 am
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