Ferry inquiry hears marine safety inspector testimony
The inquest into the National Day sea disaster continued on Thursday with a Marine safety officer answering questions on safety and the minimum required crew sizes for the ferries involved in the tragic collision.
The inquest into the National Day sea disaster continued on Thursday with a Marine safety officer answering questions on safety and the minimum required crew sizes for the ferries involved in the tragic collision.
Of particular concern was the reason or reasons why the minimum required crew for the Hongkong Electric-owned Lamma IV ferry, which sank in the accident, was suddenly doubled in 2008.
Marine Department shipping safety officer Tam Yun-sing, who made the crew requirement change, said he had no recollection of why the change was made and that the reasons for the change were not documented as is the usual practice in the department.
Lamma IV has two decks and is capable of carrying many passengers, In case of fire and emergency, I do not think two crew members would have been enough
However, he said he would normally inform the ship owner of the change at the scene after observing fire and emergency drills by the crew.
He also said that if the ship owner had wanted to challenge the decision, the company would have been entitled to know the reason or reasons.
“Fires on board, decisions to abandon ship, and how to evacuate and rescue passengers are the issues I am most concerned with,” he said.
He said the performance of the crew during the drill would be one of the issues he considered when deciding the minimum number of crew members before renewing the vessel’s licence.
