Company fined following death of golf ball diver

The 53-year-old diver failed to resurface while searching for golf balls in a lake at a County Antrim golf course

A Ballymoney-based company and its only director have been sentenced for heath and safety offences following the death of a man during a commercial diving operation.

The case arose out of the death of Victor Crothers, 53, who had been recovering golf balls from a lake at the Hilton Hotel in Templepatrick on 26 October 2021.

GolfBallsNI Ltd., which is no longer trading, was fined £100 for failing to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the safety of the deceased.

The sole director of GolfBallsNI Ltd, Tom Best, was also fined £10,000 for the same offence, following the death of Mr Crothers, his father-in-law.

On the day of the incident, Mr Crothers failed to resurface while scuba diving in a search for golf balls.

The case was heard at Antrim Crown Court on Tuesday after both parties admitted the offences, following an investigation by the Health and Safety Executive for Northern Ireland (HSENI).

The investigation identified a number of shortcomings in the planning and management of the dive.

These included not having a dive supervisor, risk assessments, dive plans and method statements, as well as equipment issues.

Speaking after the hearing, Kyle Carrick, a principal inspector with HSENI, said the "tragic drowning incident could easily have been avoided".

"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 said "nothing I can impose is in anyway capable of equating to the life of Victor Crothers".

'Full of fun'

Judge Bagnall told the court it was clear from all the information before her that Mr Crothers "was always full of fun, very playful and loved to tell stories to his family".

"Sadly nothing I can say will bring Victor back or indeed make the pain for his family and fiends any less," the judge said.

"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."