Offshore Racing Deaths - eyewitnesses to tragedy

by Bob Wonders on 17 Dec 2009
Tom Barry-Cotter, driver of the Class 1 offshore racer ‘Maritimo 11' was in the pits watching the race when Victory 1 seemingly ‘sky dived' and went over backwards killing Mohammad Al Mehairi and Jean Marc Sanchez.

The pair was racing in the final round of the Class 1 world championship in Dubai last Sunday when the tragic accident occurred. 'We saw Victory 1 crash, but of course at that stage we had no idea of the seriousness of the incident,' he said.

It was not until the rescue teams reached the stricken boat that those in the vicinity saw the destruction of the big Class 1 vessel.

'From what we saw and what we learnt later, the hull and deck separated, the cockpit was smashed beyond recognition,' Tom said. 'Mohammad and Jean Marc were killed instantly on impact.'

Several derogatory comments have been levelled at the rescue operations, with Maritimo Offshore Race Team owner, Bill Barry-Cotter, particularly vocal. According to official reports, rescuers reached the capsized boat in 80 seconds; however Bill Barry-Cotter claims any time in excess of 45 seconds is 'cause for concern.'

'There should be two helicopters with scuba divers aboard and at every turn mark there should be divers stationed within 30 seconds of the marks,' he declared.

Although he was not on site, Bill carefully viewed video footage of the crash and spoke at length with members of his team in Dubai. 'The response was inadequate from the beginning,' he said. 'First boat to reach the crash site was the start boat, which has no one on board capable of rescuing anyone,' he added.

According to Tom Barry-Cotter, when rescue teams did pull alongside the upturned racer, the divers were unable at first to locate the two crew members. 'As I said, the cockpit was absolutely smashed and Mohammad and Jean Marc had been thrown out and were actually stuck further forward beneath the bow section,' he explained.

Engineers working for the Maritimo team are already looking at ways and means to strengthen the cockpits on the team boats, to ensure a similar breaking up can be avoided. 'We're trialling a few safety factors, but it's too early to make firm decisions on what may or may not be adopted,' Tom explained.


In what may surprise some fans, Tom Barry-Cotter (driver) revealed that he and his throttleman, Pal Virik Nilsen, are the only competitors wearing full-face race helmets contesting the Class 1 series.

Still obviously upset, Tom described the late Jean Marc Sanchez as 'a champion bloke.' 'I did not know Mohammad as well, but Jean Marc was a lot of fun, always at the post-race parties and intent on having a good time,' he added.
'We'll miss them both, that's for sure.'