Jury Awards $2.8M to Crewmembers of Superyacht That Sank a Tanker

Tanker Tropic Breeze settles in the water after she was struck by Utopia IV (NTSB)

Three former crewmembers of a yacht that hit and sank a tanker in 2021 have won millions of dollars in damages in a suit against the yacht's owners.

On the evening of December 23, 2021, the product tanker Tropic Breeze got under way from New Providence Island in the Bahamas with about 150,000 gallons of petroleum products aboard. The vessel's AIS transceiver was not working, according to the NTSB.

At 2030 hours, the Italian-built superyacht Utopia IV departed New Providence Island with 12 crewmembers and seven passengers, making 20 knots. The yacht's bosun - who was on watch alone in the wheelhouse at the time of the collision - told the NTSB that the spray at the bow made it harder to see, and the S-band radar display was out. Only the X-band was available, and it was set to a range of three nautical miles.

At about 2200 hours, Utopia IV hit Tropic Breeze's transom, penetrating the hull. The tanker's crew abandoned ship, and the stricken vessel sank in about 2,000 feet of water. The yacht suffered minor damage at the bow (below left) and stayed afloat. Three injuries were reported aboard Utopia IV, but no fatalities on either vessel.

NTSB concluded that the casualty occurred because both vessels' crews failed to keep a proper lookout by all available means. "Although the Utopia IV bore responsibility as the overtaking vessel to manoeuvre away from the tank vessel, once the yacht’s intentions were unclear and a close-quarters situation had developed, the tank vessel should have taken action," NTSB found.

In late 2022, three former Utopia IV crewmembers - identified by yachting media as the vessel's deckhand, ETO and chief engineer - filed a negligence and unseaworthiness suit against the yacht's owners, seeking maintenance and cure plus damages. The ETO reported a fractured left ankle and PTSD; the chief engineer reported whiplash and PTSD, among other injuries; and the deckhand reported a fractured right foot and PTSD. A Florida jury awarded them a combined $2.8 million for medical bills and wages, plus punitive damages.

Utopia IV was refitted after the casualty and is currently listed for sale with Fraser Yachts. The asking price is $44 million, all U.S. import duties paid.

Utopia IV (file image courtesy Rossinavi)