1 hour ago, webfact said:

When the boat hit the rocks, the boat driver, identified as Mr. Natthawut Poengkuson, told the tourists to put on their life vests before the vessel capsized.

That's a bit like carrying a crash helmet on a bike and putting it on when you have an accident!

Oh, I forgot, they do that already.

2 hours ago, webfact said:

When the boat hit the rocks, the boat driver, identified as Mr. Natthawut Poengkuson, told the tourists to put on their life vests before the vessel capsized.

He should have told them to put on the life jackets when they BOARDED THE BOAT !!!!!!!!!.........so much for Thai marine safety standards and training.

3 minutes ago, animalmagic said:

That's a bit like carrying a crash helmet on a bike and putting it on when you have an accident!

Oh, I forgot, they do that already.

Yeah, the time between collision and hitting the ground must be around one second - plenty of time.

For Thais the crash helmet is a 'fine' solution.

He told them to put on life jackets after the boat hit and was about to sink !!  What !!  They should have been wearing them before they left the harbour. Lack of care by both Thai and Chinese.

Having over the years in a previous life ( UK ), acquired and gained  proficient RYA qualifications for Sail and Power, I wonder if by chance the Thais have the same licensing authority recognised by Insurance companies or is it, I can drive/ride a motor vehicle than I can drive a boat attitude. 

Too many accidents due to poor or zero quals for the boat drivers and complete lack of any  checks by the relevant state agencies seem to compouind the situation making boat travel ion TYhailand as risky as getting on a minibus here, close to dangerous even possibly suicidal as you /they value your life less than a cockroach. 

1 minute ago, jaiyen said:

He told them to put on life jackets after the boat hit and was about to sink !!  What !!  They should have been wearing them before they left the harbour. Lack of care by both Thai and Chinese.

I think you've nailed it. Neither group appears to have an understanding of safety or any interest in implementing it.

 

Having said that, the Titanic only had enough lifeboats for a third of the people on board, so perhaps we can't criticise too much?

Maybe it not just the roads that are claimed to be the most dangerous in the world . 

Did the pilot run away or swim away. 

13 hours ago, Otis Cribelcoblis said:

Why do the Thais want to drown Chinese?

In revenge for defecating in the streets after acting like rotary hoes at any hotel buffet?     

35 minutes ago, AhFarangJa said:

He should have told them to put on the life jackets when they BOARDED THE BOAT !!!!!!!!!.........so much for Thai marine safety standards and training.

You're right, considering most of the Chinese can't swim. On the other hand, they should know this when they embarked the boat, and put them on regardles lack of 'orders' from the 'pilot'.

26 minutes ago, PEE TEE said:

Maybe it not just the roads that are claimed to be the most dangerous in the world . 

I know what we need. A sales drive for amphibious vehicles.

I've got the marketing pitch sorted already: The new way to kill two birds with one stone.

 

59 minutes ago, AhFarangJa said:

He should have told them to put on the life jackets when they BOARDED THE BOAT !!!!!!!!!.........so much for Thai marine safety standards and training.

So I guess the officials responsible at a national level for marine stuff didn't bother (or too stupid) to cc new Thai policies etc., etc., as a consequence of the Phoenix tragedy, and as usual nothing is being checked properly.  

 

Or, are the new policies and procedures only applicable to Phuket and nearby? It wouldn't surprise me. 

Just before the boat capsized, there was BBQ Shrimp buffet was offered to the guests!

1 hour ago, madmen said:

23? Surely a misprint 

They count only the people alive!

Any thoughts on what the seabed object could been if this is what caused the capsize. 

1 minute ago, NextStationBangkok said:

Just before the boat capsized, there was BBQ Shrimp buffet was offered to the guests!

Was that before or after the mango and sticky rice? 

13 hours ago, darksidedog said:

If he ran away across the water, his name is probably Jesus.

Cops can "find him" at most churches on Sundays.

Yeah, I wondered about that sentence too. Ha, the mind boggles...perhaps he had one of the heavy diving suits and waked along the sea bottom. 

1 minute ago, scorecard said:

Was that before or after the mango and sticky rice? 

Generally sticky rice and man'go's goes after final prayers....

There should be a law that these subversive, submerged reefs are all marked with red flags or similar.

How's a "Pilot" supposed to avoid them if they can't be seen when travelling at 30 knots?

50 minutes ago, bluesofa said:

I think you've nailed it. Neither group appears to have an understanding of safety or any interest in implementing it.

 

Having said that, the Titanic only had enough lifeboats for a third of the people on board, so perhaps we can't criticise too much?

Yes, we take it for granted carriers on land or sea meet safety regulations. If there are any of course ! 

This is gonna deplete a lot of feelgood stories from the TAT's cache, I fear.

13 hours ago, bluesofa said:

And on the third day, he rose again from the dead depths.

 

Who knew JC was a Game of Thrones Ironborn....

At least they won't ever bring people to Samet with that boat again!!  That boat is kapoot! 

2 hours ago, Benmart said:

The Chinese government would do well to ban their citizens from coming to LOS for six months. Then perhaps some improvement in safety would materialize. Unfortunately, once the cash cow returned, so would the greed, corruption and lax safety practices come back.

Then the TAT will start luring the Nigerians with free mango sticky rice.

14 hours ago, Otis Cribelcoblis said:

Why do the Thais want to drown Chinese?

could they be looking for a Chinese sub?

14 hours ago, darksidedog said:

If he ran away across the water, his name is probably Jesus.

Cops can "find him" at most churches on Sundays.

you beat me to it

14 hours ago, ThreeEyedRaven said:

He is extremely lucky that no one was killed. If they had been the cops would have crucified him. 

They still should for running away, as well as possibly having too many passengers.

 

Harsh punishment is necessary to send a message to the thousands of others who just don't care. Leaving the scene of an accident, injuries or not, should be punished with imprisonment in ALL cases./

23 plus crew on a speedboat. Yeah, what could possibly go wrong? It seems some lessons are NEVER learned.

Two things come to mind-

 

Don't Thai boats have a "Maximum of xx Passengers" sign displayed with capacity depending on boat size? I thought was now regulated. 

 

And don't all passengers have to wear a floatation vest at all times on a boat, per revised regulations after Phoenix disaster? 

 

It looks like lessons aren't learnt and nothing has changed since 49 deaths on Phoenix in Phuket.. 

 

And the boat pilot doing a runner and not assisting passengers should mean mandatory jail term and big fine.. 

14 hours ago, bluesofa said:

Because they can?

But really, I don't know what the correct response is any more - criticise, laugh, be concerned, ignore the news item as it's becoming as regular as traffic deaths.

 

The country that's number one in the world for traffic deaths. Coming soon - the country that's number one for drowning Chinese tourists.

I suppose to quote Prawit - 'at least no Thais died.'

It's all about being a hub of something. Drowning Chinese there is no competition, so easy to get an award