Crew escape as passenger ferry rams into terminal sea wall
Crew members escape unhurt as mechanical problems prevent vessel from reversing
Ten mainland crew members escaped injury when their catamaran slammed into a sea wall in Tsim Sha Tsui and mounted the shore yesterday.
The 42-metre mainland-registered Nansha No 38, a high-speed ferry, was trying to dock at the Hong Kong China Ferry Terminal to pick up passengers bound for Panyu when it hit the wall shortly before 8am.
“We were told that due to a mechanical problem, the vessel failed to reverse, kept moving forward and then hit the sea wall,” a police officer said.
The bow of the vessel mounted a concrete barrier, spreading debris across the pavement.
Police closed a section of Gateway Boulevard to traffic before the vessel was towed to a Tsing Yi shipyard.
The bow of the catamaran was slightly damaged, forcing it out of service for repairs and inspection, according to the Marine Department.