A COMPANY delayed airlifting a Barnsley engineer from his deathbed in West Africa because of a financial dispute, an inquest heard.
Simon Johnson died from malaria 15 minutes before an air ambulance landed in Nigeria to transport him for medical treatment.
A Sheffield inquest heard that the 31-year-old contracted the disease while working on board a boat off the coast of West Af
rica.
But the boat owners, Offshore Seismic Surveys (OSS), did not move Mr Harrison to a specialist centre in Nairobi, Kenya for five days.
Businessman Peter Harrison told the inquest that OSS supervisor Bill Steel contacted him "in a state of panic" after Mr Johnson fell gravely ill.
Mr Harrison, managing director of Nautech, which provided payroll for OSS workers, was called into the OSS office in Houston, USA.
Mr Harrison said: "It was obvious there was some sort of problem.
"Bill's desk was scattered with papers and he was acting irrationally, he was in a panic. It appeared that Simon Johnson's condition had deteriorated.
"There was a bone of contention that Gardline (the company which provided the ship's marine crew) should have organised the air ambulance.
"But because there was a dispute they were unlikely to be spending money on OSS and were no longer contracted to them."
Mr Harrison said that as Gardline was no longer in funds from OSS, they were unprepared to pay up to £60,000 for the air ambulance.
"There was bickering between the two companies and I could see the urgency of the matter," he said.
Mr Harrison agreed to cover the cost on his business employee policy.
He described Mr Johnson as a sub-contractor for the ship's owners, who he paid as part of his services to OSS.
Coroner Chris Dorries described the contract Nautech gave to Mr Johnson, of Pogmoor Road, Barnsley, as a "mish-mash between being a sub-contractor and an employee".
Mr Johnson was transferred from the boat to a clinic, then transferred to hospital for dialysis.
Francisca Esemonu, a Nigerian shipping manager who stayed by his bedside, sent an email to the coroner.
She said: "It was my opinion that when blood transfusions are needed, it's time to get out of Nigeria. I made this clear to all parties."
Coroner Chris Dorries adjourned the inquest at Sheffield Medico Legal Centre and called for John Bird, the ship's captain, to give evidence.
