A solemn karakia marked the beginning of the sentencing of a deep-sea skipper and his employer, after the death of a fisherman at sea, a long way from home and far from help.

In the early hours of the longest night, on June 21, 2022, while working on board a Sealord vessel near the Chatham Islands, the 47-year-old died “undignified and alone” of peritonitis caused by a perforated duodenal ulcer.

He had been unwell since coming out of his workstation days earlier, but skipper Eru Puata didn’t recognise the seriousness of the man’s condition, even after he twice asked for pain relief.

Puata told two crew members to “f*** off” after they tried to alert him to the man’s deteriorating condition.

Now he and his employer have been convicted and fined, with the Sealord Group taking the lion’s share of the penalty even though culpability lay with Puata, a court heard today.

Counsel for the prosecutor, Maritime NZ, said it was “entirely accepted” that Puata was a good man and a caring skipper who made a bad mistake, but it was not a minor slip-up.

Despite having a number of convictions for health and safety breaches, Sealord had robust systems “well beyond” that required by law, said Judge Tony Snell. Photo / RNZ – Allison Hossain

It was a single event made up of three components in the course of one evening, but the apex of the failure was the point at which Puata could have taken action but didn’t, said lawyer for the prosecution, Ben Finn.

Puata, 50, was found guilty on a charge under health and safety at work legislation after a three-week, judge-alone trial in Wellington last May.

Today, he was sentenced and fined just over $10,000 in the Nelson District Court on the charge that arose from his inadequate response to a serious illness or medical emergency at sea.

Sealord was also found guilty by way of attribution, having breached its duty to the worker through the actions and inactions of Puata.

The company was fined $80,000 at the culmination of today’s more than three-hour sentencing.

‘Emotional expression’

The man’s cousin told the court, in her victim impact statement read at sentencing, that the pair had been raised as brother and sister.

She explained the karakia was an emotional expression of the recent past.

“His passing had such an emotional impact on me,” the woman said, while explaining her own significant health challenges had led her to wonder if she would survive to see the closure that occurred today.

She said the whānau was grateful the man, whose name was permanently suppressed at their request, was able to be brought home for a tangi.

She said they had long sought answers as to “what the hell went on?”

Condition ‘not diagnosed’

Judge Tony Snell said in his reserved decision following trial that the man’s condition was not diagnosed while he was off work sick while on board the ship in June 2022.

Nor was the seriousness and urgent need for shore-based intensive medical intervention for the condition ever understood or appreciated by those who could have helped.

However, Judge Snell said at sentencing that despite having a number of convictions for breaches of health and safety, Sealord had robust health and safety systems “well beyond” that required by law.

It also had good systems for dealing with medical emergencies in remote locations.

Judge Snell noted the company’s upfront payment of $65,000 to the whānau, in recognition of the emotional harm done, which negated the need for court-ordered reparation.

Deteriorating condition

Puata was described as a caring skipper who, until now, had an unblemished record.

The mid-winter voyage, delayed by Covid, left Lyttelton after the ship had sailed from Nelson.

The man fell ill about June 17, but neither Puata nor Sealord were culpable for any inaction until the afternoon of June 20, before the man’s death just after 2am on June 21.

At about 5pm on June 20 he had gone up to the bridge to tell Puata he was in pain and was given codeine.

Judge Snell said the bridge was not well lit, which meant Puata was unable to make basic observations.

Later on, two crew members went to see Puata about the man’s deteriorating condition but they were told to “f*** off” and were sent on their way, Judge Snell said.

Unable to be saved

At the midnight handover, Puata failed to notify the designated medic about the man’s condition and request for pain relief, or that two crew members had visited and expressed concerns.

At 2.15am the man was found unresponsive, a short distance from his cabin.

The person who found him alerted the ship’s medic, but he could not be saved, Judge Snell said.

He said expert medical evidence showed nothing Puata could have done at that point would have changed the outcome.

The best he could have offered was palliative care to “make his passing more peaceful”, Judge Snell said.

He died alone, undignified and no doubt in great pain, in what was a “significant departure from standards and standard operating procedures” normally engaged on the boat, Judge Snell said.

Judge Tony Snell Judge Snell noted the company’s upfront payment of $65,000 to the whānau, in recognition of the emotional harm done. Photo / Stephen Parker

The prosecution submitted that the apex of the failure to diagnose the condition as serious, or at least warranting help, was on June 20 when the man’s condition had “visibly deteriorated”.

Counsel for Puata, Paul White, said despite having defended the charges, his client had accepted the findings that were now a blight on an otherwise impeccable career.

“He will labour with this for the rest of his life, and the rest of his career,” White said.

A lawyer for Sealord, James Cairney, said while the failure lay in the absence of palliative care, that was not a demonstration of poor systems on board, or lack of training.

There were appropriate resources on board and systems in place to cope with a medical emergency in a remote location.

From a starting point for fines of $12,000, Puata was fined $10,200 and ordered to pay $10,000 in costs plus a $5000 contribution towards expert witness costs.

Sealord was also ordered to pay $20,000 in costs plus a $5000 contribution to witness costs over and above the $80,000 fine.

Tracy Neal is a Nelson-based Open Justice reporter at NZME. She was previously RNZ’s regional reporter in Nelson-Marlborough and has covered general news, including court and local government for the Nelson Mail.