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Admiralty Law Keyed to Maraist
Scindia Steam Navigation Co. v. De Los Santos
Citation:
451 U.S. 156, 101 S. Ct. 1614, 68 L. Ed. 2d 1 (1981)Facts
On December 10, 1972, Seattle Stevedore Co. was loading wheat into the hold of the M/S Jalaratna, owned by Scindia Steam Navigation Co. A winch, part of the ship’s gear, was being used to lower wooden pallets containing seventy 50-pound sacks of wheat into the hold. The winch’s braking mechanism had been malfunctioning for two days, failing to quickly stop the descent of loaded pallets, which would continue to drop for several feet before stopping. Santos and other longshoremen were working in the hold, removing sacks from the pallets and stowing them. During the operation, a pallet being lowered struck a pallet jack with force, spilling about half the sacks. The hatch tender signaled the winch operator to raise the pallet about 15 feet and allowed Santos and others to clear the spilled sacks. Minutes later, more sacks fell from the suspended pallet, striking and injuring Santos. There was dispute whether the additional sacks fell because the pallet was swinging or because the braking mechanism slipped multiple times, working loose the sacks that fell on Santos. The parties also disputed whether the shipowner knew or should have known about the defective winch, whether the stevedore had exclusive control over the loading operation, and whether the defective winch was the proximate cause of Santos’s injuries.
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