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01/06/2012
Drunken Captain Jailed After Crash
A drunken captain whose cargo ship crashed into a passenger ferry in Belfast Lough has been jailed for a year.
Miroslaw Pozniak, 55, caused £1m worth of damage to the ships while three times over the limit, on March 7 this year.
Nobody was injured when his ship collided with the Stena Feronia, which was travelling between Birkenhead (near Liverpool) and Belfast with 92 people on board.
Downpatrick Crown Court heard that Pozniak, at the helm of the Union Moon, ignored warnings from coastguards and had no look-out despite the darkness.
The Pole admitted charges of failing to navigate, failing to keep a proper look-out and causing serious damage to ships.
But his lawyer Sean Doran said he had taken the "uncharacteristic" move of drinking six or seven bottles of beer in his cabin having just got bad news about his wife’s relapse into ill health.
The court heard the 55-year-old was 20 degrees off course in Belfast Lough and the Stena Feronia, coming in to dock, did not have time to swerve.
Pozniak wept in court and expressed regret for the crash.
The father-of-two has been sacked and the court heard it is unlikely he will work as a captain again.
Judge David Smyth QC told Pozniak: "The following of the regulations in relation to alcohol and also in relation to the charting and proper adherence to accepted routes is of vital importance. The ending of your 30-year career and the sentence effectively demonstrate that."
(NE/GK)
Miroslaw Pozniak, 55, caused £1m worth of damage to the ships while three times over the limit, on March 7 this year.
Nobody was injured when his ship collided with the Stena Feronia, which was travelling between Birkenhead (near Liverpool) and Belfast with 92 people on board.
Downpatrick Crown Court heard that Pozniak, at the helm of the Union Moon, ignored warnings from coastguards and had no look-out despite the darkness.
The Pole admitted charges of failing to navigate, failing to keep a proper look-out and causing serious damage to ships.
But his lawyer Sean Doran said he had taken the "uncharacteristic" move of drinking six or seven bottles of beer in his cabin having just got bad news about his wife’s relapse into ill health.
The court heard the 55-year-old was 20 degrees off course in Belfast Lough and the Stena Feronia, coming in to dock, did not have time to swerve.
Pozniak wept in court and expressed regret for the crash.
The father-of-two has been sacked and the court heard it is unlikely he will work as a captain again.
Judge David Smyth QC told Pozniak: "The following of the regulations in relation to alcohol and also in relation to the charting and proper adherence to accepted routes is of vital importance. The ending of your 30-year career and the sentence effectively demonstrate that."
(NE/GK)
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