Crew member charged amid tourism damage control after Phi Phi speedboat explodes

[snoop1130]

Crew member charged amid tourism damage control after Phi Phi speedboat explodes

By THE NATION

 

 

A CREW member of the speedboat that exploded on Sunday while heading from Phuket to Koh Phi Phi, resulting in 16 injuries, has been charged with recklessness causing injuries, Royal Thai Police deputy spokesman Pol Colonel Krissana Pattanacharoen told a press conference in Bangkok on Monday.

 

Twenty-six Chinese tourists and five Thai crew members were on the “King Poseidon 959” speedboat chartered by Apple Tour, which left from a private pier in Phuket’s Muang district and was headed to Phi Phi Island when it exploded in front of the so-called “Viking Cave” attraction. 

 

Police investigators were gathering evidence to determine whether to prosecute anyone else, particularly the boat’s captain who was being investigated for his role in the incident, Krissana said. 

 

There were no further details about the accused crew member’s actions in relation to the accident.

 

The boat’s licence was also checked but it had been found to have been properly registered, Krissana added.

 

As a fuel leak was initially identified as the probable cause of the accident, officials from the Krabi Harbour Office On Monday joined forensic police and relevant officials to inspect the scene. They found the sunken burned hull of the speedboat stuck amid rocks along with the boat’s three engines and towed the remains to Phi Phi Beach for a detailed inspection.

 

Police officers On Monday were waiting to talk to boat captain Kriengkrai Boonsri, 28, who was being treated in a Krabi |Hospital’s intensive care unit (ICU). Kriengkrai was among six |people who were still in hospital due to serious injuries.

 

Krabi Governor Pol Lt-Colonel ML Kitibodi Prawit visited two injured Chinese tourists at Krabi Nakharin International Hospital’s ICU, after Tourism and Sports Minister Weerasak Kowsurat had visited the tourists a day earlier. The hospital’s staff said the two tourists had suffered burns covering nearly 50 per cent of their bodies and would remain in hospital for three weeks.

 

The incident also prompted Phuket Governor Norapat Plodthong to call a meeting On Monday of relevant agencies to implement long-term measures to prevent similar incidents. 

 

He said the private pier had not kept records of passengers’ number and names, as public piers are required to do, posing difficulties for authorities seeking to provide assistance to the victims. He also assigned officials to check on all private piers’ safety measures.

 

Norapat said Phuket would also introduce a programme to keep online records of boats, departures and arrivals, and passenger names so assistance could be provided in a timely manner in cases of emergency.

 

Norapat also led officials to inspect the private pier in question and visit wounded tourist Kwang Pei Hong, 26, who will be kept at Vachira Phuket Hospital for at least two weeks after suffering serious burns. 

 

Charoen Kaewyodla, an adviser to Thai Morning Sun Co, which owned the speedboat, said the firm was sorry for what had happened and would take care of the injured tourists, who were covered by insurance policies.

 

The speedboat damage was estimated at Bt3 million.

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/breakingnews/30336307

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2018-1-15

[300sd]

Another preventable tragedy. There are so many here.

[Rhys]

Just sad.... profit over safety?

[ChrisY1]

"Police investigators were gathering evidence to determine whether to prosecute anyone else, "

 

Shouldn't be too hard to prosecute plenty more people.....just try the authorities for allowing these boats to operate unhindered by authorities and, if there just happens to be some remote standard that these vessels operate under, an audit carried out.....

Nah! dreaming again........never would happen!!

[DoctorG]

The story fails to explain why that particular crew member was charged. Perhaps he was the only one not to end up in hospital, so it must be his fault.

[anon789561]

tourism damage control? i read about this online in the metro (londons free newspaper handed out to commuters) this article despite no brits being involved. so much for your tourism damage control

[Sir Dude]

Be interesting to know the size dimensions of the speedboat. So, with 31 people on board, it would need to be fairly big if it was certified to carry that many people safely. However, forgive my cynicism and not that it's being mentioned anywhere, but I would have thought though that the boat was probably overloaded due to the usual greed before safety routine here. 

[alien365]

Best get the chicken extract and prune juice hampers ready for the customary wai photo.

[cookieqw]

I’ve seen fuel put onto these boats in plastic containers at Pattaya beach.

and as for the pier not keeping records as it should, ha ha this is the way it’s done in Thailand. -  nobody cares

[4MyEgo]

Look on the bright side fella's, they had insurance, that has got to be a 1st 555

[Oziex1]

A lot of babbling about the beauraucratic side of it,  any thoughts on the practical side of safety like maintenance perhaps.

 

No Captains go down with their ship here. 

[quadperfect]

2 hours ago, Oziex1 said:

A lot of babbling about the beauraucratic side of it,  any thoughts on the practical side of safety like maintenance perhaps.

 

No Captains go down with their ship here. 

The captain was probobly positioned on top of the fuel tank. As surely the fuel tank is foreward of  its mid ship to ballance out the engines weight But if not and he is injured badly ,he may have helped people out and got his injurys from this .

Possible .

Most likely it was a smoker in the crew that blew the boat up. Thats not mentioned but its most likely cause you need a spark for explosion.

Crew smoke on every boat i have been on. Even though a no smoking sign is right there with big fines posted.

The captain on a speed boat i was on a few weeks ago held the sign up to a crew who light up a cigy for a passenger..  Like it was such a good joke. It was funny actually. Such contempt.

Too bad i dont have a video. I should have but didnt.

I almost did because it was a party. Beers rolling down the isle from passengers drinking and smoking up foreward.it was not what a sober oceanmaster captain wants to see really,while at the hands of another ameture captain

It was something i wanted to film to show friends the stuff that happens in thailand.