Company and Director Fined After Fatal Diving Incident

A Ballymoney-based firm and its sole director have been penalized for health and safety violations following the death of an individual during a commercial diving operation. The case originated from the fatality of Victor Crothers, 53, who was retrieving golf balls from a lake at the Hilton Hotel in Templepatrick on 26 October 2021. GolfBallsNI Ltd., which is no longer in operation, received a fine of £100 for failing to ensure, to a reasonably practicable extent, the safety of the deceased. Tom Best, the sole director of GolfBallsNI Ltd, was also fined £10,000 for the identical offence, subsequent to the death of Mr Crothers, who was his father-in-law. On the day of the occurrence, Mr Crothers did not resurface while scuba diving in his search for golf balls. The legal proceedings were conducted at Antrim Crown Court on Tuesday after both parties admitted to the offences, following an investigation carried out by the Health and Safety Executive for Northern Ireland (HSENI). The inquiry identified several deficiencies in the planning and management of the dive. These included the absence of a dive supervisor, risk assessments, dive plans, and method statements, along with issues concerning equipment. Speaking after the hearing, Kyle Carrick, a principal inspector with HSENI, stated that the “tragic drowning incident could easily have been avoided”. He added, “Diving is a hazardous activity and there are specific requirements to control the risks associated with diving at work. These must be followed in order to avoid such tragedies.” Judge Fiona Bagnall remarked that “nothing I can impose is in anyway capable of equating to the life of Victor Crothers”. Judge Bagnall informed the court that it was evident from all the information presented that Mr Crothers “was always full of fun, very playful and loved to tell stories to his family”. The judge further commented, “Sadly nothing I can say will bring Victor back or indeed make the pain for his family and fiends any less,” concluding, “He was obviously a man very much loved by all his family and someone who contributed greatly to the lives of those lucky enough to know him.”