Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
But as I mentioned just a little while ago, the
Northern Territory Police so that they responded to reports of
a vessel fire off the coast of Darwen. On Friday
about four twenty in the afternoon, police received reports of
a passenger ferry traveling between Darwin and Twe Islands reportedly
experiencing a fire on board. Now the Fairy is believed
to have had about one hundred and eighty passengers and
(00:22):
four crew on board. Now joining me on the line
is one of those passengers. Tasman, Tasman Pitts Hill. Good
morning to you Tasman.
Speaker 2 (00:32):
Morning Katie Mate.
Speaker 3 (00:33):
What happened on Friday? Arevo?
Speaker 2 (00:36):
Oh what a confronting and traumatic ordeal. It was specifically
for my daughter, but many other passengers on board as well.
Speaker 3 (00:45):
What happened mate?
Speaker 4 (00:47):
Wow?
Speaker 2 (00:47):
We'd left Tivi Islands as per the plan yep, about
three fifteen. I think we left and as you can imagine,
the boat was full of people, my wife, three children,
my parents are there, dog and we weren't far into
the trip and we hear this bang and the boat
just comes to a complete hole. There's smoke, flames from
(01:09):
the back starboard side. I think it is on the
back of the boat, and of course everyone's just screaming.
The fire fire fine, there's smoke starting to fill the cabin.
There's people running frantically in and out of the back
doors of the boat, and my step mum was sitting
(01:34):
there at the time with the dog and they just
got trampled just through sheer panic of people running everywhere.
One of the crewmen come running into the main part
of the boat where most of the people were sitting
and had his t shirt like pulled over his face,
covering his mouth and nose, coughing and everything, screaming. Everyone
(01:56):
get to the other side of the boat, and of
course there's heaps of elderly on the boat and stuff
that came quickly, and the smell like you couldn't breathe.
Probably everyone was coughing and spluttering. It just filled everything
up really quickly, and then of course firearms going off
like it just happened, like click of the fingers. It
(02:18):
was all on.
Speaker 1 (02:18):
Mate. Were you worried that the boat was going to
sink or what were you thinking at this point?
Speaker 2 (02:23):
Yeah? Of course when they said that, because it's a
camera and I thought maybe they're trying to get the
other side of the boat out of the water to
try and float on one hull or something. I'm not
really sure, but when we were straight away, I said, no,
we're not staying in this cabin, my wife and daughter
that were with me, and so we legged out the
(02:44):
front of the boat and climbed onto the roof to
try and get away from the smoke, sort of save
yourself sort of situation. So yeah, it was, Yeah, it
was really really traumatic. My daughter was is shaking, and
imagine a lot of other people were as well. You
could visibly see everyone was shaken. There's a lot of
(03:06):
coughing and nausey all that sort of thing going on
there Tasmin.
Speaker 1 (03:12):
We're told it was around one hundred and eighty passengers
on board, Is that right?
Speaker 2 (03:18):
Yeah, that's right. It was chockers, absolutely chockers.
Speaker 1 (03:21):
And you were coming were you coming back from Teewee
back to Darwin?
Speaker 3 (03:25):
Is that correct?
Speaker 4 (03:26):
Yeah?
Speaker 2 (03:26):
Yeah, that's correct.
Speaker 3 (03:27):
Yeah, Oh goodness mate. So what happened next? Like how
long did it.
Speaker 1 (03:32):
Take for somebody to you know, to get the fire
under control or for somebody to come out and what
was the like what was the panic like from passengers?
Speaker 4 (03:41):
Oh?
Speaker 2 (03:42):
Yeah, real panics like just that whole uncertainty and lack
of direction. I suppose that you know, like life jackets
went passed out or anything like that. It was that's
if anyone even knew where they were, and just all
huddling like shoulder to should on such a small little
(04:03):
bit of boat. There was a rear and at the
on the top of the boat and at the front
of the boat. But finally the captain got on the
speed so that the fire was under control. There'd been
an engine fire, it was under control, and I think
they used like a suppression stuff. I'm not exactly sure
(04:24):
what it is to kill the fire, but of course
that's got its toxic smell in nature as well, there's
just these like you couldn't breathe around it.
Speaker 1 (04:35):
So holy Molly, Now what happens sort of next in
terms of were you able to get all the way
to Darwin or did you have to be rescued?
Speaker 3 (04:44):
What happened?
Speaker 2 (04:46):
Yeah, Well, again there was a whole lot of uncertainty
on what was happening next. We weren't told next to
next to nothing really, but so they dropped the anchor.
They left I think generator running on board, so that
airk on or something could continue to run, but there
(05:06):
was no real knowing who was coming to rescue us.
At one point I said the Navy was coming an
hour upon our, upon our, upon how it just went by.
So eight hours later, roughly nine hours later, another ceiling
boat pulled up and then they said to us, you
(05:27):
can't take anything with you, though, because this boat will
be overloaded as it is. And I thought, oh, I
don't even know if I want to get onto that boat.
Littlelone be on this one any longer.
Speaker 3 (05:38):
So what did you do?
Speaker 2 (05:40):
Well, we all ended up going across that's In fact,
that was the first time we will put life jackets
on and just to cross the gangway there to get
onto the other boat. And we just everyone just piled
onto that boat and we made it back into Darwin
at about a quarter past eleven that night. So it
(06:00):
was it was a huge day.
Speaker 3 (06:03):
Oh mate, are you all right? Is your family okay?
Is your dog all right?
Speaker 2 (06:09):
Yeah? Mostly, However, the following day it was as if
we'd had a big night, you know, like we everyone was.
Naise had no headaches, migraines quite like a dry cough,
and you can only put that down to what we'd breathed,
(06:30):
what we'd all breed them. Yeah, such a confined space,
so overall I think would be alright, but yeah, long
term effects, you'd never really know something like that.
Speaker 1 (06:42):
Yeah, and look, I'm keen to ask and feel for
If you don't want to disclose this, that's totally fine.
But do you guys live over on Teewee or do
you live in town? And what's it going to mean,
like in terms of taking that troop again, are you
going to sort.
Speaker 3 (06:53):
Of going to be harder?
Speaker 2 (06:56):
To be perfectly frank, Katie, I won't be getting on
another ceiling. Yeah right, I'm just I wasn't assured at
any stage that there was everything was under control. I
didn't believe that it was.
Speaker 1 (07:10):
Yeah, well, look we'll try and seek comment from them,
you know, as to their reaction, and you know how
they're going to to respond I suppose as well, So
we'll do our best to do that. I mean to
go back to that, to that other question like, yeah,
are you do you need to or are you going
to need to do that trip again?
Speaker 3 (07:30):
And what will you what are you going to do?
Speaker 2 (07:34):
Yeah, well that's that's the thing. I've got the monopoly
and travel across it unless you've got a private vessel
of your own. But we we were just visiting twa
for the day. We live in Darwin and just sort
of nice to pop over there and got friends and stuff.
Speaker 1 (07:49):
There, and then you feel for the locals, you know,
like like you said, that's your transport here and there,
and you'd be I'd be quite trawn tie st after
something like that had happened. I don't know if you'd
be able to get me back on a bush in.
Speaker 4 (08:05):
A hurry, that's right, Yeah, yeah, definitely, yeah, yeah, well
exactly that amatic and sort of like lack of direction
and not knowing.
Speaker 2 (08:18):
And all of those sorts of things is just what
would make it and just never get on one of
them again.
Speaker 3 (08:22):
Yeah, Tasman.
Speaker 1 (08:24):
Look, I'm gonna have to leave it there because we've
got a head across and catch up with the counsel
of the aging. But I'm just going to pop you
on hold because I know the other media are keen
to talk to you as well, So I'm just gonna
pop you on hold and Crystal have a quick yarn
to you, mate, pass on my will wishes to your family.
Speaker 3 (08:40):
I hope that you are Okay.
Speaker 1 (08:42):
To everybody that was on that boat, I feel for
you and I really hope that you're all okay.
Speaker 2 (08:50):
Yeah, thanks so much, Katie
Speaker 3 (08:51):
Thanks Mate, I appreciate it.
But as I mentioned just a little while ago, the
Northern Territory Police so that they responded to reports of
a vessel fire off the coast of Darwen. On Friday
about four twenty in the afternoon, police received reports of
a passenger ferry traveling between Darwin and Twe Islands reportedly
experiencing a fire on board. Now the Fairy is believed
to have had about one hundred and eighty passengers and
(00:22):
four crew on board. Now joining me on the line
is one of those passengers. Tasman, Tasman Pitts Hill. Good
morning to you Tasman.
Speaker 2 (00:32):
Morning Katie Mate.
Speaker 3 (00:33):
What happened on Friday? Arevo?
Speaker 2 (00:36):
Oh what a confronting and traumatic ordeal. It was specifically
for my daughter, but many other passengers on board as well.
Speaker 3 (00:45):
What happened mate?
Speaker 4 (00:47):
Wow?
Speaker 2 (00:47):
We'd left Tivi Islands as per the plan yep, about
three fifteen. I think we left and as you can imagine,
the boat was full of people, my wife, three children,
my parents are there, dog and we weren't far into
the trip and we hear this bang and the boat
just comes to a complete hole. There's smoke, flames from
(01:09):
the back starboard side. I think it is on the
back of the boat, and of course everyone's just screaming.
The fire fire fine, there's smoke starting to fill the cabin.
There's people running frantically in and out of the back
doors of the boat, and my step mum was sitting
(01:34):
there at the time with the dog and they just
got trampled just through sheer panic of people running everywhere.
One of the crewmen come running into the main part
of the boat where most of the people were sitting
and had his t shirt like pulled over his face,
covering his mouth and nose, coughing and everything, screaming. Everyone
(01:56):
get to the other side of the boat, and of
course there's heaps of elderly on the boat and stuff
that came quickly, and the smell like you couldn't breathe.
Probably everyone was coughing and spluttering. It just filled everything
up really quickly, and then of course firearms going off
like it just happened, like click of the fingers. It
(02:18):
was all on.
Speaker 1 (02:18):
Mate. Were you worried that the boat was going to
sink or what were you thinking at this point?
Speaker 2 (02:23):
Yeah? Of course when they said that, because it's a
camera and I thought maybe they're trying to get the
other side of the boat out of the water to
try and float on one hull or something. I'm not
really sure, but when we were straight away, I said, no,
we're not staying in this cabin, my wife and daughter
that were with me, and so we legged out the
(02:44):
front of the boat and climbed onto the roof to
try and get away from the smoke, sort of save
yourself sort of situation. So yeah, it was, Yeah, it
was really really traumatic. My daughter was is shaking, and
imagine a lot of other people were as well. You
could visibly see everyone was shaken. There's a lot of
(03:06):
coughing and nausey all that sort of thing going on
there Tasmin.
Speaker 1 (03:12):
We're told it was around one hundred and eighty passengers
on board, Is that right?
Speaker 2 (03:18):
Yeah, that's right. It was chockers, absolutely chockers.
Speaker 1 (03:21):
And you were coming were you coming back from Teewee
back to Darwin?
Speaker 3 (03:25):
Is that correct?
Speaker 4 (03:26):
Yeah?
Speaker 2 (03:26):
Yeah, that's correct.
Speaker 3 (03:27):
Yeah, Oh goodness mate. So what happened next? Like how
long did it.
Speaker 1 (03:32):
Take for somebody to you know, to get the fire
under control or for somebody to come out and what
was the like what was the panic like from passengers?
Speaker 4 (03:41):
Oh?
Speaker 2 (03:42):
Yeah, real panics like just that whole uncertainty and lack
of direction. I suppose that you know, like life jackets
went passed out or anything like that. It was that's
if anyone even knew where they were, and just all
huddling like shoulder to should on such a small little
(04:03):
bit of boat. There was a rear and at the
on the top of the boat and at the front
of the boat. But finally the captain got on the
speed so that the fire was under control. There'd been
an engine fire, it was under control, and I think
they used like a suppression stuff. I'm not exactly sure
(04:24):
what it is to kill the fire, but of course
that's got its toxic smell in nature as well, there's
just these like you couldn't breathe around it.
Speaker 1 (04:35):
So holy Molly, Now what happens sort of next in
terms of were you able to get all the way
to Darwin or did you have to be rescued?
Speaker 3 (04:44):
What happened?
Speaker 2 (04:46):
Yeah, Well, again there was a whole lot of uncertainty
on what was happening next. We weren't told next to
next to nothing really, but so they dropped the anchor.
They left I think generator running on board, so that
airk on or something could continue to run, but there
(05:06):
was no real knowing who was coming to rescue us.
At one point I said the Navy was coming an
hour upon our, upon our, upon how it just went by.
So eight hours later, roughly nine hours later, another ceiling
boat pulled up and then they said to us, you
(05:27):
can't take anything with you, though, because this boat will
be overloaded as it is. And I thought, oh, I
don't even know if I want to get onto that boat.
Littlelone be on this one any longer.
Speaker 3 (05:38):
So what did you do?
Speaker 2 (05:40):
Well, we all ended up going across that's In fact,
that was the first time we will put life jackets
on and just to cross the gangway there to get
onto the other boat. And we just everyone just piled
onto that boat and we made it back into Darwin
at about a quarter past eleven that night. So it
(06:00):
was it was a huge day.
Speaker 3 (06:03):
Oh mate, are you all right? Is your family okay?
Is your dog all right?
Speaker 2 (06:09):
Yeah? Mostly, However, the following day it was as if
we'd had a big night, you know, like we everyone was.
Naise had no headaches, migraines quite like a dry cough,
and you can only put that down to what we'd breathed,
(06:30):
what we'd all breed them. Yeah, such a confined space,
so overall I think would be alright, but yeah, long
term effects, you'd never really know something like that.
Speaker 1 (06:42):
Yeah, and look, I'm keen to ask and feel for
If you don't want to disclose this, that's totally fine.
But do you guys live over on Teewee or do
you live in town? And what's it going to mean,
like in terms of taking that troop again, are you
going to sort.
Speaker 3 (06:53):
Of going to be harder?
Speaker 2 (06:56):
To be perfectly frank, Katie, I won't be getting on
another ceiling. Yeah right, I'm just I wasn't assured at
any stage that there was everything was under control. I
didn't believe that it was.
Speaker 1 (07:10):
Yeah, well, look we'll try and seek comment from them,
you know, as to their reaction, and you know how
they're going to to respond I suppose as well, So
we'll do our best to do that. I mean to
go back to that, to that other question like, yeah,
are you do you need to or are you going
to need to do that trip again?
Speaker 3 (07:30):
And what will you what are you going to do?
Speaker 2 (07:34):
Yeah, well that's that's the thing. I've got the monopoly
and travel across it unless you've got a private vessel
of your own. But we we were just visiting twa
for the day. We live in Darwin and just sort
of nice to pop over there and got friends and stuff.
Speaker 1 (07:49):
There, and then you feel for the locals, you know,
like like you said, that's your transport here and there,
and you'd be I'd be quite trawn tie st after
something like that had happened. I don't know if you'd
be able to get me back on a bush in.
Speaker 4 (08:05):
A hurry, that's right, Yeah, yeah, definitely, yeah, yeah, well
exactly that amatic and sort of like lack of direction
and not knowing.
Speaker 2 (08:18):
And all of those sorts of things is just what
would make it and just never get on one of
them again.
Speaker 3 (08:22):
Yeah, Tasman.
Speaker 1 (08:24):
Look, I'm gonna have to leave it there because we've
got a head across and catch up with the counsel
of the aging. But I'm just going to pop you
on hold because I know the other media are keen
to talk to you as well, So I'm just gonna
pop you on hold and Crystal have a quick yarn
to you, mate, pass on my will wishes to your family.
Speaker 3 (08:40):
I hope that you are Okay.
Speaker 1 (08:42):
To everybody that was on that boat, I feel for
you and I really hope that you're all okay.
Speaker 2 (08:50):
Yeah, thanks so much, Katie
Speaker 3 (08:51):
Thanks Mate, I appreciate it.
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Boysober
Have you ever wondered what life might be like if you stopped worrying about being wanted, and focused on understanding what you actually want? That was the question Hope Woodard asked herself after a string of situationships inspired her to take a break from sex and dating. She went "boysober," a personal concept that sparked a global movement among women looking to prioritize themselves over men. Now, Hope is looking to expand the ways we explore our relationship to relationships. Taking a bold, unfiltered look into modern love, romance, and self-discovery, Boysober will dive into messy stories about dating, sex, love, friendship, and breaking generational patterns—all with humor, vulnerability, and a fresh perspective.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com