Fareham girl died after speedboat captain 'failed to pay attention' and slammed boat into buoy, court told

Emily Lewis, 15 from Park Gate, Fareham, suffered ‘unsurvivable’ injuries when the rigid inflatable boat (Rib) collided with the buoy at 36.8 knots in the Solent at 10.11am on August 22, 2020.

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Winchester Crown Court heard the boat drove directly at a 4.5m high metal buoy for 14 seconds before hitting it. Other passengers were seriously injured.

Driver Michael Lawrence, 55, has been charged with manslaughter by gross negligence, failing to maintain a proper lookout and failing to proceed at a safe speed.

Michael Howley, 52, the owner of Seadogz, the company which operated the boat trip, is accused of not operating the boat safely.

Christine Agnew KC, prosecuting, told court Emily’s parents, Simon and Nikki Lewis, had decided to take their daughters, Emily and Amy, 18, on the ride.

She said: ‘This was to be a high-thrills ride. Tragically it was both a high-thrills and ultimately an extremely dangerous ride, which ended with the death of Emily.

‘She died from internal injuries she sustained by being crushed against the metal handle immediately in front of her, when the boat crashed head on into a metal buoy which Michael Lawrence appears not to have seen.

‘Perhaps because he wasn’t paying attention and was distracted, or because he was planning to take a sharp turn around it, and because he wasn’t paying close enough attention, he miscalculated the turn.

‘In either event the prosecution say that his actions that day fell far below those of a competent skipper.’

Ms Agnew told the court that Lawrence initially said a face mask blocked his vision, but changed his account after mobile phone footage emerged.

She added Lawrence, an ‘extremely-experienced mariner’, went on to say he had suffered a blackout. Ms Agnew said ‘he took risks he should not have done’ and his actions were ‘truly exceptionally bad, grossly negligent and caused the death of Emily.’

Ms Agnew said the Rib was recorded travelling at speeds of 47.8 knots, in excess of an expired speed limit of 40 knots (46mph).

She told court the Stormforce 950 rib crossed the wake of the Red Falcon ferry five times before the boat ‘hit the buoy’. Ms Agnew added: ‘Amy Lewis broke her arm in the collision and passed out.

‘When she regained consciousness, she saw the handlebar in front of Emily had gone straight into Emily’s stomach. Emily was saying she couldn’t breathe, she was scared and her lips were blue.’

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Ms Agnew said Lawrence was seen ‘walking up and down the boat, not appearing to assist anyone at that stage and stepping over anyone in the way’, and he later said he was in shock.

At hospital, doctors found Emily had unsurvivable brain damage and Ms Agnew added: ‘Her family took the unspeakably difficult decision to turn off Emily’s life support system and she died.’

She said Mrs Lewis suffered a fractured right wrist and her husband suffered a strained right knee and wrist and a chest injury. Howley faces a lesser charge as there were no policies and procedures in place to ensure passenger safety.

Lawrence, of Blackfield, and Howley, of Hordle, deny all charges. The trial continues.