A Queenstown man has been fined $750 and ordered to pay $20,000 in reparation after a child was seriously injured during a day out on his boat on Lake Wakatipu last year.
The young girl was one of four children taking turns on an inflatable biscuit being pulled by the man’s boat in February 2021.
Maritime NZ says the girl was on the back of the boat feeding out rope while two other children were riding on the biscuit, when her leg got caught in the rope and flipped her into the lake.
However, instead of killing the engine and pulling her back aboard, the skipper reversed and she was struck by the boat’s propeller.
The girl suffered serious cuts that left her unable to walk for months.
Maritime NZ’s Southern Compliance Manager, Domonic Venz, acknowledged the man had followed other safety protocols, including checking there were lifejackets onboard and briefing the children on safety.
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