Grave fears for skipper

by Nathan Scholz, Courier Mail on 30 May 2003 Rough seas and 30-knot winds will hamper the resumed search today for a trawler skipper missing after a bulk carrier struck and sunk his boat northeast of Townsville.

Friends and family of skipper Ronny David, 55, still held hope last night he would be found alive, despite having spent nearly 24 hours in the sea.

Townsville water police said they held grave fears for Mr David, saying he was not a very good swimmer.

The only other person on the boat, a deckhand, was recovering at home yesterday after he spent four hours clinging to wreckage before he was rescued.

Police and investigators from the Australian Transport Safety Bureau will examine how the 225m, 70,000 tonne bulk carrier Asian Nova struck the 13m wooden trawler Sassenach just after midnight yesterday.

A spokesman for search co-ordinators Australian Search and Rescue said there had been initial reports the bulk carrier snagged one of the trawler's lines and either pulled the boat under or dragged it into the larger ship.

But trawl fishermen at the Ross River marina, where the Sassenach was based, said they believed it was extremely unlikely another vessel could come into contact with a trawler's nets or lines.

The AusSAR spokesman said the deckhand, 62, had confirmed the two boats collided.

Seven aircraft and 14 vessels searched the sea about 65km northeast of Townsville for any trace of Mr David, who was last seen heading to the trawler's wheelhouse.

The effort was hampered by 30 knot winds and rough seas.

Friends said the missing man was a champion drag racer with a passion for racing, fishing and parties.

'That's all I ever knew him to do,' a friend said.

Another friend added: 'He was good at all three.'

With his car 'Ton a Fun' Mr David was Australian champion in the Super Sedan class in 1987.

He had a wall of trophies at his Bushland Beach home for club, regional and state championship wins.

'Anyone who went to the drags, they might not know him but they know the car,' a friend said.

The friends said the career fisherman had always tried to fit his work around his passion for racing.

Sassenach's owners Colin and Carol Jones would not talk about the accident yesterday.

'We're just waiting to hear from Ron,' Mrs Jones said.

Late yesterday afternoon searchers found the wreck on the seabed, off Palm Island.

It was located using information from a compulsory satellite tracking system designed for fisheries officers to pinpoint where trawlers were working on the Great Barrier Reef.

The search was scaled down last night and weather conditions in the area will dictate how it is continued today.

Water police Inspector Chris Reeves said winds of up to 30 knots were expected to continue today.

'A sea search would be very difficult if not dangerous.'

Insp Reeves said search co-ordinators would decide whether to use a combination of surface vessels and aircraft in today's search, or just aircraft.

Insp Reeves said the weather also would delay any search and recovery effort on the wreckage, in more than 40m of water, for some days.

He said the Asian Nova was anchored off Townsville and had not been scheduled to arrive in the city until Sunday.