Clung to wood as ship sank, survivor tells court

A survivor of the Melina and Keith II sinking in 2005 told a St. John's courtroom how he clung to a piece of wood after jumping out of the longliner.

Igor Dragushevsky, one of four people rescued when the ship sank in September 2005, was testifying at St. John's provincial court as testimony resumed in the trial of skipper Shawn Ralph.

Four men died when the Melina and Keith II sank, in an incident that raised questions about search-and-rescue procedures.

Ralph is charged with eight violations of the Canada Shipping Act.

In testimony in January before the trial was postponed Dragushevsky cast Ralph in unfavourable terms.

Testifying Monday, Dragushevsky said Ralph did little to ensure the safety of his crew.

Dragushevsky told the court he knew where to findlife-jackets and the ship's fire extinguisher, because he had seen them under a bunk. He testified he had never been shown how to don a survival suit.

Dragushevsky reminded the court he had been in the galley when the longliner began to sink, and that no one warned him of the pending danger.

At times emotional during his testimony, Dragushevsky said he survived by clinging to a piece of wood that had a nail in it. He said he pierced his skin with the nail to keep his muscles from cramping.

Trialresumes inJanuary

After hearing testimony for just one day, Ralph's trial has been postponed again.

It is scheduled to resume in late January with testimony from at least six more witnesses, including Ralph himself.

Ralph's lawyer, David Bussey,has already suggested that the charges against his client are deflecting attention from how federal authorities handled the case.

The four survivors were rescued almost four hours after the vessel went down. It took more than an hourfor a helicopter to be launched after the distress call was received.

In May, the Canadian Coast Guard released a report that said the agency followed procedure in how crews responded to the sinking, even though the report made almost three dozen recommendations on how search-and-rescue operations can be improved.