A Queensland inquest into the deaths of two fishermen on a trawler that sank in rough seas has heard the vessel was refitted by an unqualified boatbuilder.

March 19, 2019

A fishing vessel that sank, killing two Queensland men, had just been converted into a prawn trawler by an unqualified boat builder, an inquest has been told.

Skipper Matt Roberts, 61, and crewman David Chivers, 36, were trawling for prawns off Fraser Island when their boat, the FV Cassandra, overturned early on April 4, 2016.

Huge swells prevented rescuers reaching the stricken vessel, which sank about 10 kilometres off the island’s northeastern tip in 47 metres of water.

The vessel’s two emergency radio beacons were not activated and the men’s bodies have never been found.

How and why they died is being explored by a coroner in Gladstone.

Shortly before the tragedy, Stephen Armitage was hired by the boat’s owner to convert the vessel from a charter fishing boat into a trawler.

By video-link, the unqualified builder told the inquest he used some second-hand equipment to refit the vessel as a prawn trawler with four nets and two boom arms to support them.

“The arms came off my boat and the gallows were made from new steel,” Mr Armitage told the inquest on Tuesday.

The set-up is common across the fishing industry.

However, no discussions were held with its owner about the boat’s stability or the effect the set-up could have on the boat’s stability, he said.

Counsel assisting the coroner, John Aberdeen, said lifesaving equipment was found tangled in rigging and failed to deploy.

“In the case of the Cassandra, the life vests can be clearly seen floating in the wheelhouse,” he said as he commentated on footage of the sunken vessel.

The video supported the theory one of the FV Cassandra’s nets snagged on the seabed, causing her to roll, he said.

The boat is too deep for divers to reach but the underwater video camera fitted to a remotely operated vehicle was used to explore the wreck.

It’s sitting largely upright on the sandy sea floor.

“One can see a life ring still attached to the boat – they are of course supposed to float free from the vessel,” he said.

A life raft supposed to automatically deploy when the vessel reached a depth of four metres was also still attached to the boat, he said.

The vessel’s structural soundness, whether there was adequate safety equipment on board, and if the search and rescue operation was sufficient will also be explored by coroner David O’Connell.

Experts will give evidence on whether future deaths could be prevented by making it compulsory for fishermen to wear life jackets.

Access to personal location beacons and “grab bags” containing diving masks and portable air tanks in an emergency will also be considered.

Similar issues will be explored next week when the inquest considers the deaths of six men on FV Dianne, which capsized off the coast of the Town of 1770 in October 2017.

The sole survivor, Ruben McDornan, clung to the hull, listening to the screams of his friends trapped inside, before it sank.

He spent the night treading water until a couple on a passing yacht heard his yells for help.

The bodies two crewmates – 30-year-old Adam Hoffman and 45-year-old Ben Leahy – were later found by police divers.

The remaining fishermen – 39-year-old Eli Tonks, 33-year-old Adam Bidner, 28-year-old Zach Feeney and Chris Sammut, 34, – are presumed dead.

The inquest continues.