A boat captain whose son and passenger were killed when their fishing vessel capsized off the coast of Bulli did not do his "homework" about the reef and failed to effectively use his onboard equipment, a court has heard.
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Closing submissions were made on the third day of a Wollongong Local Court hearing to determine if the man's actions that night amounted to negligence.
The man's five-year-old son and a 28-year-old male passenger were killed after a 5.5-metre borrowed runabout hit Peggy's Reef and capsized in darkness just before 6pm on June 6.
Police prosecutor Sergeant Mark Watson told the court there were several ways the man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, could have avoided clipping the reef as he was familiar with the location and was an experienced boat fisherman.
Sgt Watson alleged the man relied on his sight, navigation system and onshore streetlights to guide him back to shore.
"He uses the land as a safe reference point for himself rather than the instruments," Sgt Watson said. "It appears his daytime familiarity with the area lulled him into a false sense of security."
He went on to allege that if the man had used the Lowrance HDS Carbon 9 Fish Finder and Chartplotter device to show and use the same wide-arc course he had taken when they travelled out to fish for the afternoon, then he would have avoided the reef when he returned.
"He made a safe journey just a few hours earlier," Sgt Watson said before adding the captain acknowledged he knew how to check the plotter.
Sgt Watson also alleged that the speed the boat was relative, adding that if the captain had been travelling more slowly then he may have heard or seen the waves crashing over the reef and avoided the collision - as the Port Kembla Water Police's officer in charge Sean Netting said in evidence on Wednesday.
"Sadly there was just a combination of errors," Sgt Watson said.
The man's defence barrister Derreck Drewett said his client did not know the reef was there and therefore his actions did not amount to negligence.
Mr Drewett said his client may or may not have been able to see the reef when the boat left from Bellambi boat ramp at 2pm due to a rising tide.
The barrister added the signs at the boat ramp did not indicate what specifically the "underwater hazards" were out to sea, however Magistrate Claire Girotto did suggest it was the man's responsibility to do "some homework" about the potential hazards before leaving shore.
Mr Drewett went on to suggest that despite the speed the boat was travelling it would have clipped the reef and due to the night being "pitch black" the man would not have seen or heard the waves crashing on the reef.
Magistrate Girotto adjourned the case for judgement to July 27.
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