Coroner warns of party boat risks after clubber drowned in Amsterdam canal

The coroner said the case ‘tragically highlighted the risks of parties on board a boat associated with alcohol or drugs’

(PA)

A coroner has warned of the risks of party boats after a British clubber drowned in an Amsterdam canal while on a weekend away with his partner.

Wind turbine rigger Neil Stewart, 30, from Newcastle, “spontaneously” jumped into the North Sea Canal in November 2017 and his body was only found the following month.

Coroner Karen Dilks recorded a conclusion of accidental death by drowning after she heard three days of evidence at an inquest in Newcastle.

The coroner had heard Mr Stewart had been drinking during the day and had taken cannabis and cocaine earlier, and he was drinking rum and coke on board the boat.

There was a brief altercation with another guest and Mr Stewart was taken to an outside smoking deck to calm down.

Ms Dilks said: “At or around 00:43, he jumped suddenly and spontaneously from the middle smoking deck of the party boat into the water, which led to his drowning.”

The skipper took action, stopping and reversing the boat and the water was lit up in a bid to locate Mr Stewart, but a rescue boat on the top deck was not launched.

The coroner said she was limited in what recommendations she could make to the Dutch authorities, as she did not have jurisdiction there.

“This case however tragically highlighted the risks of parties on board a boat associated with alcohol or drugs,” she said.

The coroner will write to the British event organiser, BTID - Bounce Til I Die - which had two representatives at the hearing, with recommendations including that the firm creates a safety policy clearly documenting steps put in place to keep guests safe.

The coroner said this was not a judgment, criticism or punishment for the organisers.

Ms Dilks rejected a submission on behalf of Mr Stewart’s family to conclude that his death was unlawful, made on the basis that the safety boat was not launched.

Mr Stewart’s fiancee Chelsea Dixon had previously told his inquest how she had organised the weekend away as a surprise and how happy he had been.

His mother Alma Stewart told the hearing on Wednesday he had a “heart of gold”, adding: “The void left behind in our lives can never be filled.”