Phuket rescue centre launched; police probe ownership of stricken Phoenix tour boat

[webfact]

Phoenix stripped of pumps

By SALINEE PRAB, 
SOMCHAI SAMART 
THE NATION

 

 

Phuket rescue centre launched; police probe ownership of stricken tour boat

 

TWO WEEKS after 47 people died in boat accidents in the sea off Phuket, a 24-hour marine rescue centre was officially opened in the province yesterday. 

 

The move is an effort to prevent a repeat of the July 5 accidents while authorities pursue legal actions against the operators of the vessels. 

 

Phuket Governor Noraphat Plodthong said yesterday that the centre would operate round the clock with three lifeboats on standby.

 

 

The Ao Chalong Marine Safety Centre, which was operational yesterday, will soon be followed by a similar centre in nearby Phang Nga province. 

 

Both centres will be equipped with communication systems that connect with all relevant agencies to provide early warning and efficient co-ordination. Diving and rescue equipment will also be available. 

 

Noraphat said relevant officials would also check all boats and their crew before allowing them to leave shore. 

 

“We also are also implementing a tracking system to ensure we know where they are going,” he added. 

 

Phuket and Phang Nga are a major attraction for tourists and many boat tours are offered. 

 

 

On July 5, the Phoenix and Serenata tour boats sank after allegedly leaving shore despite a warning about rough sea conditions.

 

Although many tourists were rescued, 47 Chinese tourists aboard the Phoenix were killed. Several tourists on Serenata were injured but survived. 

 

Authorities have now taken legal actions against the operators of the two boats. 

 

 

The Phoenix is owned by TC Blue Dream, with Woralak Rerkchaikan, 26, as its biggest shareholder. 

 

Woralak is now in detention after Phuket Provincial Court denied her bail request. 

 

The captain of the Phoenix, Somjing Boontham, is also being detained. The boat’s mechanic, Ornjan Kanhayotee, has been granted bail. They are charged with recklessness causing death and injury. 

 

The Chinese manager of the Serenata, which is owned by Lazy Cat Travel, is now being detained at the Phuket immigration facility while the boat’s captain Metha Limsakul has been released on bail. Both are charged with recklessness causing injury. 

 

Tourist Police deputy commander Pol Maj-General Surachate Hakparn yesterday suggested that Woralak could be a nominee.

 

“How could a company worker suddenly acquire money to register a company and get an expensive boat for her firm? Her school friends |say she is not from a rich family,” he said. 

 

He said Woralak claimed she married a Chinese diving instructor and used his money to set up the firm. “To date, her husband has never come forward,” Surachate said. 

 

He also raised doubts about the poor standards on the Phoenix. “And because it had just one pump, not four pumps, it sank within five minutes after water started coming in,” Surachate said. 

 

He said the owner of Phoenix might have reduced safety standards to save costs. 

 

“We have inspected its reported twin, which is now being built. The inspection shows it does not match prescribed specifications,” he said. 

 

The director of the Phuket Marine Office has been transferred in the wake of the tragedies. 

 

“The office has the duty to examine a boat before approving it for use,” Surachate said. “Records show other approved boats have between 70 and 80 pages of information to back the approval. But the Phoenix boat is backed by four to five pages only.” 

 

Surachate said authorities already have solid evidence to prove TC Blue Dream used nominees in a bid to evade taxes and “if convicted, it will face asset seizures”. 

 

Police have also investigated the operator of the Serenata and found out that the company may have encroached on public land, he said. 

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/national/30350274

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2018-07-18

[trainman34014]

Tip of a massive Iceberg of corruption here and you could place a large wager on many other Boat 'owners' being no more than a front for tax evasion purposes.

 

Huge reform needed to change things but after a few weeks of making noises all will return to normal as they are incapable of doing things properly.  Just a matter of time before the next disaster occurs.

[tompelli]

3 lifeboats on standby? Would love to see what they class as a lifeboat. Will these boats also have trained crews or are they remote controlled?

[Oziex1]

Does it really matter who owns the boat the real issue is allowing tour boats to sail in adverse conditions.

Blaming system failures or lack of systems, doesn't lead to a pot of gold now does it!

[smedly]

would have made absolutely no difference to this tragedy, the simple truth is that money rules over safety, this boat should never have put to sea with severe weather warnings in place, people should not have been wearing life jackets while inside the boat.

 

The captain, owner and some others are arrested and currently jail, nobody has actually said what it was they did wrong, seems to me they were allowed to put to sea and the authorities failed to stop them, there are a few others that should be facing charges IMO for allowing this boat out of the harbor.

[melvinmelvin]

 

some of the posts above hint at the idea that the boat(s) should be "detained" in harbour due to weather conditions

 

not sure I like that idea - to me that implies shifting the responsibility for judging weather conditions from the captain

to some person working in an office somewhere

I think that would be pretty unprecedented actually

 

[Oziex1]

2 minutes ago, melvinmelvin said:

 

some of the posts above hint at the idea that the boat(s) should be "detained" in harbour due to weather conditions

 

not sure I like that idea - to me that implies shifting the responsibility for judging weather conditions from the captain

to some person working in an office somewhere

I think that would be pretty unprecedented actually

 

I would suggest the person allocated the responsibility to close the harbour would be seasoned veteran seaman ex Captains or the like.

[scottiejohn]

23 minutes ago, Oziex1 said:

I would suggest the person allocated the responsibility to close the harbour would be seasoned veteran seaman ex Captains or the like.

Each boat/craft will have to be subject to different safety criteria.  A blanket ban is overkill.  What is unsafe for a 3m dingy is perfectly safe for a seaworthy and properly manned and equipped 60m Ferry boat.

[Oziex1]

24 minutes ago, scottiejohn said:

Each boat/craft will have to be subject to different safety criteria.  A blanket ban is overkill.  What is unsafe for a 3m dingy is perfectly safe for a seaworthy and properly manned and equipped 60m Ferry boat.

So what is the answer to the issue?

[Old Croc]

19 minutes ago, Oziex1 said:

So what is the answer to the issue?

Currently they ban vessels under 10 meters from leaving port when weather is a concern 

[Juan B Tong]

But the Minister of Tourism  " also urged authorities to explain that the cause of the accident was not related to so-called zero-dollar tours or nominee ownership in tourism."

[keeniau96]

These simplistic solutions and comments show a lack of understanding of boats and Phuket. Inspect every boat before shoving off would require looking at over a hundred boats every day, ranging from small one-man long-tail fishing boats to the large ferryboats. Note that this blanket demand would also fall on the blue-water private yachts (tour boats are not yachts) that have crossed the Pacific and other oceans, often in true heavy weather conditions. 

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

4 hours ago, Oziex1 said:

I would suggest the person allocated the responsibility to close the harbour would be seasoned veteran seaman ex Captains or the like.

 

You mean, like the typical taxi driver on water boat captains here???

 

Those kind of veteran Thai seamen?   

[stevenl]

4 hours ago, melvinmelvin said:

 

some of the posts above hint at the idea that the boat(s) should be "detained" in harbour due to weather conditions

 

not sure I like that idea - to me that implies shifting the responsibility for judging weather conditions from the captain

to some person working in an office somewhere

I think that would be pretty unprecedented actually

 

Agree with you to a large extend.

 

However for my guests I make that decision. E.g. for today I decided yesterday to cancel. All in all I know of one other agent and two  diveboats that decided to cancel. So this morning at Chalong pier it was a pandemonium when authorities did not make clear their intentions until around 08.45, and decided to cancel. The boat operators though would have gone out. Now I know some of the boats to be trustworthy, and they would have been safe, but for some others I have doubts. Comfortable for the guests, also a requirement IMO, after all a trip should not only be safe but also fun, none would have been.

 

So there are more issues than just boat safety, but I have more and more doubts about whether the operators/captains are able to make the right decisions.

[melvinmelvin]

yes,

I also have my doubts re operators/skippers - but going towards a system where the ultimate responsibility is no longer with

the driver is something new and requires a lot (A LOT) of thinking

(not necessarily sound in my view)

 

and should it be done - how would be done?

my guess is by means of some kind of committee so that cockups could be spread and watered down;

1 police officer - one TAT officer and one Marine Dep officer and in these military times; probably an officer from the armed forces

 

Edited July 18, 2018 by melvinmelvin

[stevenl]

1 minute ago, melvinmelvin said:

yes,

I also have my doubts re operators/skippers - but going towards a system where the ultimate responsibility is no longer with

the driver is something new and requires a lot (A LOT) of thinking

(not necessarily sound in my view)

 

Agree with you, which is why I only trust myself with these decisions.

[quadperfect]

2 hours ago, keeniau96 said:

These simplistic solutions and comments show a lack of understanding of boats and Phuket. Inspect every boat before shoving off would require looking at over a hundred boats every day, ranging from small one-man long-tail fishing boats to the large ferryboats. Note that this blanket demand would also fall on the blue-water private yachts (tour boats are not yachts) that have crossed the Pacific and other oceans, often in true heavy weather conditions. 

Every touring passenger boat is how i read it. 300 to 400 of these  Not every boat in the harbour. And obviously they could not check 400 boats at 9.30 am for a 9.45 departure. But some kind of certificate needs to be given on a regular basis for compliance.

with inspectors doing spot checks constantly.

These private yachts turned passenger catamarans here are not safe with 30 people on there decks.  There designed for 4 people .They will also flip over in winds we experienced that day. I watched one just about flip that day.

 

[melvinmelvin]

the boat owner has an obligation to renew tabien ruua on a yearly basis (to the extent they want to use the boat)

my impression is that most do

(there is also a mandatory insurance bit in this)

 

 

what you say in your last paragraph is perhaps true.

and I maintain that the answer is driver education

drivers must understand stability, must understand what weather does to stability

must understand what their vessel can take and what it cannot take

you can't (with success) shift this responsibility from the drivers to some uniformed guy in an office

 

[300sd]

A 95 foot cruise boat with one pump. Incredible Thailand

 

[Oziex1]

3 hours ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

 

You mean, like the typical taxi driver on water boat captains here???

 

Those kind of veteran Thai seamen?   

Well it's a bit of a worry isint it.

[Scott]

Troll post reported and removed.