KEY POINTS:
The Earthrace speedboat and its New Zealand skipper have come to a financial settlement with the families of the Guatemalan fishermen involved in a fatal collision with the trimaran.
Aucklander Pete Bethune, who is under 24-hour military surveillance in Guatemala, said Earthrace's insurer would pay for a new
fishing boat for the family of Julio David Galiano Contreras - the 54-year-old man who is lost, presumed drowned.
It had also agreed to an additional amount which he could not disclose. "But for Guatemala it's a large chunk of money," he said. "It will certainly be an upgrade from what he had." The man's boat was worth around $18,200.
Bethune said the insurer would also pay medical costs of around $28,000 for 51-year-old fisherman Pedro Salazan Gonzalez, who is in hospital recovering from a perforated stomach and intestine and a fractured sternum.
Bethune, his crew and the trimaran are at the naval base in Puerto Quetzal while the collision - which happened as Earthrace tried to set the around-the-world record for a biodiesel-powered vessel - is investigated.
Guatemalan media have claimed that the Earthrace crew were asleep when the collision occurred. "We are certainly being painted as the bad guys over here," said Bethune.
He has been told not to speak to the media but is desperate to put his side of the story to a judge.
Although he has not been charged with anything he has been detained and is under military guard. A court sitting to hear details has already been postponed four times.
The incident has taken a heavy emotional toll on the crew. On his Captain's Blog on the Earthrace website, Bethune said there had been disputes about talking to the media. Some thought they should not risk offending the Guatemalan authorities by talking about what happened but Bethune said he wanted to get their story out.
This week he insisted on a controversial press release detailing their version of what happened.
"It would seem if we make the wrong decision, I'm the one who will cop it," he said on his blog. "As captain of the boat, I am responsible ... If anyone is forced to spend time behind bars, it will be me. So bugger it. We'll run the lot.
"We have nothing to hide, and it is better that people know what happened than to speculate."
Engineer Anthony Distefano was steering Earthrace when it ran into the skiff just after midnight on March 17. Bethune said yesterday that Distefano had decided to leave, but he had already decided to stand him down.
"If he had another accident on Earthrace, the question would be raised about what he was still doing driving Earthrace.
"I don't think he dealt with it that well, and understandably - like effectively he's killed someone. I thought it was best for the team that he went back [to San Diego]," he said.
Bethune said now that the civil part of the aftermath was settled, he and his crew were keen to meet the family of the missing man.
"We were the last to see their husband alive. I'm sure even just for their own closure they would want to know specifically what happened," he says.
"I want to express our sympathy and condolences. I think it will be, not closure for our team, but it's just part of the circle... our team has been devastated by this."
