Pearly Shells
It’s over six years since the Paspaley drift diving fatality off Broome in April 2012 and the recent coronial inquest in the Perth Coroner’s Court recorded a verdict of death by misadventure.
by Bernard Corden
Always go too far because that’s where you’ll find the truth
Albert Camus
Well before colonisation, Broome on the Kimberley coast in Western Australia was the centre of Australia’s pearl industry. It was once described by a local historian as a place where pearl shells matter more than human life. This is reminiscent of a quote from a former Liverpool Football Club manager, the late Bill Shankly……Some people think football is a matter of life and death. I assure you it is much more important than that. 1–6
Leading up to Christmas 2017, the official Paspaley website featured a series of beguiling advertisements and promotions. Exclusive customers were invited to a fashionable shop until you drop extravaganza at its chic Chadstone boutique in Melbourne’s south eastern suburbs. This unique retail experience included complimentary champagne with popsicles and other sweet treats. It also afforded a wonderful opportunity to win a petite yellow gold lavaliere containing a signature Paspaley pearl valued at almost $4,000. 7–8
Its flagship boutique located at Martin Place in central Sydney glowed with pearl inspired Christmas illuminations. The display was exclusively designed by internationally acclaimed lighting specialists Haron Robson. Spherical lights were ornately arranged around the store’s entrance to provide a luminous chiaroscuro for its sophisticated customers, who were greeted with……A very Paspaley Christmas. 9–11
However, labouring at its aquaculture pearl farms or shell drift diving from vessels off the Kimberley coast is not for the meek or faint hearted. It offers a remarkably stark contrast to the glamour, opulence and decadence of the numerous boutiques seductively depicted on the official Paspaley website. The company philosophy guarantees to leave no footprint during its research and development of the fragile Pinctada Maxima oyster and advocates that every child deserves to be loved. The materialistic object is an Australian south sea cultured pearl , which is considered one of the most luxurious and magnificent baubles in the world and contributes to a several hundred million dollar industry. The Paspaley family wealth is estimated at $915 million and the company is responsible for almost 70% of Australia’s annual pearl production. 12–18
The image of Western Australia’s pearling industry is quite romantic although an elegiac and clandestine ingredient to the production of its iridescent gems prevails. A patina of insatiable extravagance disguises a miasma of Dickensian working conditions, which involves a dreary and repetitive routine of retiring early to bed and rising before dawn. The drudgery begins with a deluge of seawater, entanglement in seaweed and bites and stings from copious sea lice or copepods before an arduous ten-hour slog. Most of the deckhands are vulnerable migrants or backpackers from youth hostels and are usually engaged under temporary migrant visas. Open water drift divers are normally hired from interstate and require a scuba diving qualification with rescue competencies. 19–25
In April 2012 approximately 90 nautical miles south of Broome in Western Australia, a qualified scuba diver died whilst shell drift diving for the Paspaley Pearling Company. The divers are towed behind a trawler to collect wild pearl shells from the seabed and it is a particularly high risk underwater activity that affords little margin for error. They are supplied with diving equipment and other accessories, which include a harness, weight belt and compressed air line for breathing. 26–27
On 13th April 2012 a crew of eight drift divers completed nine successful dives with each manoeuvre lasting approximately 50 minutes. During the eighth descent on the following day, Jarrod Hampton ascended prematurely and suddenly disappeared below the surface. The entire operation was aborted and the victim was eventually hauled aboard the vessel via his compressed air breathing line. Despite several prolonged frantic attempts at resuscitation the young pearl diver never regained consciousness. The victim’s experience with open water shell drift diving was rather limited and involved attendance at an induction in Darwin supplemented by series of dives at a pearl farm near Broome. This was completed under the supervision of an experienced diver, shortly before the drift dive assignment. Nonetheless, there are several notable differences between open water and pearl farm diving. The techniques require specialist knowledge of distinctive dive profiles or tables to avoid decompression sickness. 28–34
The shell drift divers were not equipped with buoyancy compensator devices. Although one vessel in the fleet stored several body bags, oxygen therapy equipment and defibrillators were not provided. There was no requirement for a dive supervisor to remain on deck and observe diving operations. Effective communication with the drift divers was inadequate, especially during an emergency situation. The crew did not rehearse rescue drills and procedures for retrieval of distressed divers were never documented. The inquest evidence indicates the victim may have been submerged for almost 20 minutes during the chaos following his unexpected ascent. It took over seven hours for the vessel to return to Broome with the deceased on board. It was met by police and the body was subsequently transferred to the state mortuary in Perth for a post mortem. Despite the fatality normal diving operations resumed a few days later and the harmonious partnership with nature continued. 35–40
Paspaley was issued with six provisional improvement notices by WorkSafe Western Australia. A prolonged investigation followed, which extended over two years. It was quite a complex exercise that required considerable regulatory authority resources. The company was eventually charged with failing to provide and maintain a safe working environment under the Western Australia Occupational Health and Safety Act 1984. Some three years later in October 2015, the company pleaded guilty at Broome Magistrates Court. The deceased’s family attended the hearing and the organisation was fined $60,000 with $5,000 costs. 41–46
In May 2017 at the Perth Coroner’s Court a coronial inquest returned a verdict of death by misadventure. The deceased suffered pulmonary barotrauma following an uncontrolled ascent. This resulted in a stroke or cerebral arterial gas embolism, which incapacitated the victim who subsequently drowned. Evidence during the inquiry failed to establish a causal nexus relating to the victim’s premature ascent. The bereaved parents sought an inquest to discover the truth surrounding the circumstances of their son’s death. Many significant concerns remain unresolved and some pertinent questions could not be answered…..Justice delayed is merely justice denied. 47–50
The company has since provided additional safety equipment, competency based training and documented procedures. It may reduce the likelihood of other divers dying under similar circumstances although the grieving family still awaits an apology. Meanwhile, the Paspaley e-boutique website offers a unique personal shopping experience. It features a luxuriant Rockpool Paraiba Collier containing one of the rarest gemstones on the planet. The object is valued at almost $400,000 and each pearl is set with an ability to quiver and rest softly on the body. This pretentious corporate bilge ensures my footprints are unlikely to blemish any of its designer boutiques. Indeed, the germane lyrics from an old lullaby covered by the late Burl Ives resonate…..Pearly shells from the ocean, shining in the sun, covering up the shore. When I see them my heart tells me that I love you. More than all the little pearly shells. 51–55
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