Vic: Voyager disaster survivor awarded $300,000

AAP General News (Australia)
08-26-2004
Vic: Voyager disaster survivor awarded $300,000

A survivor of Australia's worst naval peacetime disaster has won compensation after
a 40-year battle with the federal government.

Victorian Supreme Court Justice DAVID ASHLEY has awarded RICHARD JAMES BAKER a $300,000 payment.

Mr BAKER was a petty officer on board HMAS Melbourne when it collided with the destroyer
Voyager during a routine exercise off the coast of Jervis Bay in New South Wales in 1964.

Eighty-two men lost their lives but the survivors were ordered not to discuss the incident
with anyone, including family members.

Mr BAKER left the navy in 1966 but he has continued to suffer from post traumatic stress
disorder.

The government introduced a mediation scheme in 1996 to settle claims on behalf of
traumatised survivors for $300,000 each.

But the sailors have had to fight for their compensation, and 125 claims are still outstanding.

Mr BAKER's settlement comes when he has been given six months to live because of an
obstructive airways disease.

AAP RTV mp/gfr/gjr

KEYWORD: VOYAGER (MELBOURNE)

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