00:00 When three friends disappeared off the waters of Tasmania's northwest coast in October 2021,
00:08 it sparked a massive multi-day search, which ended in grief for the trio's family and friends.
00:15 Now a coroner has revealed what likely unfolded.
00:19 23-year-old Aziah Dixon, 31-year-old Brianna Thomas and 27-year-old Thomas Korto were drinking
00:26 together on Sunday, October 17 and well into the early hours of the next morning.
00:32 About 10am they launched Mr Dixon's father's boat from the Wynyard Yacht Club.
00:37 At 5.30pm police were told the boat was overdue.
00:41 Two days later the bodies of Mr Dixon and Ms Thomas were found on the shore near Table Cape.
00:47 Both contained traces of methamphetamine.
00:51 It would be another six months until Mr Korto's thigh bone was found by a diver.
00:56 The boat was never recovered.
00:59 Coroner Simon Cooper has determined all three drowned.
01:02 But he found there was no evidence bad weather, problems with the boat or the actions of a
01:07 third party caused their deaths.
01:10 Instead concluding, the most likely explanation is some type of mishap, probably as the result
01:16 of poor boat handling, attributable to impairment caused by alcohol and illicit drugs.
01:22 The tragedy was wholly avoidable.
01:25 Mr Cooper says it's his firm opinion the three shouldn't have been on the water that day.
01:30 But if they had been wearing life jackets, it's likely they would have survived.
01:34 [BLANK_AUDIO]
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