Pensioner three years into a sailing trip around the world died making his way to Poole
A 74-year-old sailor, who was on a ‘round the world’ voyage, died due to 'faulty winch' while heading towards Poole
A round-the-world sailor died in a tragic accident as his yacht was approaching Poole, after a faulty winch pulled him in and inflicted catastrophic injuries, a Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) inquiry has found.
Lyall Babington, a 74-year-old New Zealander who had spent three years sailing the globe aboard his 17-metre yacht Mollie, was attempting to raise a sail on August 5th when the electric winch suddenly activated.
The vessel had left West Wittering that morning, bound for Poole Harbour.
According to the MAIB report, Babington’s right hand became caught in a rope as the winch powered up without warning.
“The winch continued to turn and the skipper was progressively pulled tighter onto the winch drum,” investigators wrote.
His crew made repeated attempts to stop the mechanism using the control switch, but the device failed to respond. By the time it eventually halted, Babington was “tightly wound” around the drum and unresponsive.
Crew members raised the alarm, prompting a swift response from Poole RNLI and a Coastguard helicopter.
As rescuers worked to free the Mr Babington, the winch activated again without warning and attempts to save him were unsuccessful.
The MAIB found the winch had a long-standing defect causing it to remain powered even after the control switch was released.
Despite this being known, no action had been taken to repair or replace the faulty system.
As investigations continue, the MAIB is expected to issue safety recommendations aimed at preventing similar incidents.