The drunken captain of a cargo ship Union Moon which collided with Stena ferry in Northern Ireland, has been sentenced for one year in jail.

Downpatrick Crown Court also heard yesterday that when the Union Moon crashed into the Stena Feriona on March 7th this year, Miroslaw Pozniak caused more than $1.5 million in damage.

Captain Pozniak (56) steered straight into the 21,856-tonne Stena ferry, gouging a large hole in the vehicle deck. He had no look-out despite the darkness.

In a preliminary breath test four hours after the impact, Pozniak's reading was 135mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood, the limit being 35mg.

Pozniak, a married father of two from Listopada, northwest Poland, pleaded guilty to failing to keep a proper lookout, failing to navigate, causing serious damage to his own ship as well as another vessel. He said it was because of news of his wife's ill-health.

In a prosecution brought by the Maritime and Coast Guard Agency, Pozniak faced a maximum of two years in jail. Jailing him for a year, Judge David Smyth QC told him that had he not pleaded guilty, he would have faced an 18-month jail sentence.

Source: Maritime Connector