The Chilean Prosecutor's Office is preparing to charge three crew members of the fishing vessel Cobra, owned by industrial fishing firm Blumar, for culpable homicide in the shipwreck of the artisanal fishing vessel Bruma.
The incident took place on 30 March off the coast of Coronel in central-southern Chile’s Bío Bío Region, where the Cobra is believed to have collided with the Bruma. The latter vessel’s seven crew members are presumed to have been killed as they have not yet been found.
In addition to charging the Cobra’s crew with culpable homicide, the Prosecutor’s Office is also looking into charging Blumar with criminal responsibility for the incident.
The decision comes after a failed third-party report commissioned of the Cobra’s cameras, as the devices that should have been operating at the time did not record anything that happened during the early hours of the morning the incident took place.
The Public Prosecutor's Office requested that the Court of Guarantee of Coronel schedule a hearing to formalize an investigation against the vessel’s captain, pilot, and lookout who were working on the navigation bridge during the incident.
The lawyer representing the families of the missing fishermen, Rafael Poblete, said that his clients are satisfied with the news and maintained that the Prosecutor's charge recognizes Blumar's “undeniable responsibility” in the tragedy.
“We hope to ask for the maximum precautionary measures and, ideally, the appointment of an auditor for Blumar, given the irregularities that exist,” he said.
In turn, the lawyer for the Cobra crew members, Alejandro Espinoza, said that the incident was “an unfortunate accident,” assuring that his clients “are also seafarers who never had the intention of causing any damage.”
“It will be a matter of the ongoing investigation to find out the reasons why the Bruma sank in a high-risk place, without a lookout on duty and without informing its position or having the regulatory security systems activated,” he said.
Blumar has previously said it collaborated on all fronts with authorities to clarify the events that could have caused the sinking of the artisanal boat, including investigations into whether the vessels kept their safety systems activated and in operation. It also contracted a firm specializing in underwater rescue and provided technological equipment to the area to facilitate searches at greater depths for the missing fishermen.
The company also said it had informed authorities that the Cobra had all the operational and certified technology required to navigate on the high seas, complying with standing regulations. The Cobra had a crew of 18 trained professionals, led by a captain with more than 40 years of experience, according to Blumar.
