1 hour ago, ryandb said:

Never done the night ferry, but take Seatran quite often, must invest in my own lifejacket as they might not be inspecting those regulary

Seatrans are excellent, probably the safest and most reputable ferry company in Thailand (not that that's saying much).

Full of safety equipment and regularly inspected.

3 hours ago, Hummin said:

Back in the days when I took the night ferry from Koh Tao to Surat Thani. 

 

Both exits almost covered in luggage. 

 

Safety first my xxx

(Barely) floating Death trap.

It was lucky they were only a few ks away any further out or had it happened in the dark of the night it would of been far worse  I have heard rumor of some deaths I hope they are just rumors 

52 minutes ago, josephbloggs said:

Seatrans are excellent, probably the safest and most reputable ferry company in Thailand (not that that's saying much).

Full of safety equipment and regularly inspected.

Without doubt Seatran is by far the best and safest vehicle and passenger ferry 

does this ferry start from DonSak?

 

 

 

We don't know the cause of the fire yet and any report is likely to be skant and amateurish.

 

However, as tourist numbers reach the pre-Covid peaks Thailand's poor attitude to health and safety is likely to become more exposed.

 

It is worth bearing in mind that many car rental and insurance companies will not allow their vehicles to be taken on ferries.

 

Any vehicles damaged may not be insured.

 

At present they say it was an engine room fire - I would have thought it was equally possible that a vehicle or some cargo caught fire.

 

In many countries this kind of incident would result in thorough review of the safety of ferries to the islands - in Thailand sadly it will result in a semi=plausible explanation by local authorities and a return to "normal" service ASAP

 

 

8 minutes ago, crazykopite said:

It was lucky they were only a few ks away any further out or had it happened in the dark of the night it would of been far worse  I have heard rumor of some deaths I hope they are just rumors 

Maybe those reported as jumping into the sea?

6 minutes ago, crazykopite said:

Without doubt Seatran is by far the best and safest vehicle and passenger ferry 

...and you are basing that opinion on what evidence?

I wonder how many life jackets the boat had and if they were easily available. I will not be surprised if we hear that they were locked up in case they were stolen.

I am surprised nobody uses a fire extinguisher… fire gets bigger by the minute and everyone watching calmly… standard procedure? Jump and swim with a life west on and always carry a waterproof bag for the cash and mobile 

1 hour ago, kwilco said:

...and you are basing that opinion on what evidence?

Like all opinions it is based on my experience. No, I haven’t personally done a safety survey of all Thai ferries in operation, but I have used many and I maintain that Seatran probably operates the safest vessels in Thailand. 
 

what’s your issue with that opinion? and then tell me your opinion and exactly what evidence your opinion is based on, thank you. 

Common occurrence and will never end in Thailand.

6 hours ago, Callmeishmael said:

The picture shows the fire at the stern of the boat, which is consistent with the fire starting in the engine room.

 

 

[deleted]

I guess that means the company will get a stern warning. Would the fire have been at the bow, they would have to bow to the authorities. Justice made easy 555

 

ok, I will now go and fetch my hat.

... " reported that the fire started in the engine room "

 

So not and electric powered ferry ... fossil fuel ... typical ... 

Investigation ordered into tour boat blaze near Koh Tao

 

 

The Marine Department has ordered an urgent investigation into the blaze which broke out this morning on a passenger boat floating near Koh Tao Island, off the coast of Surat Thani province.

 

An initial investigation has revealed that the fire started in the engine room, but its cause is still being investigated, said the department’s Director General, Kritphet Chaihuay, today.

 

The boat, carrying 90 passengers and eight crew, left Surat Thani at about 9:30pm last night, heading to Tao Island, he said, adding that authorities were alerted about the accident at approximately 6:40am this morning.

 

Caption: Photo by ᴍᴏɴsᴏᴏɴɢᴀʀʙᴀɢᴇ ᴛʜᴀɪʟᴀɴᴅ

 

Full story: Thai PBS 2024-04-04

 

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Use ferries from samui to mainland all the time always stay on the top deck . Safety first my butt hole all about the $$$$$$

2 hours ago, josephbloggs said:

Like all opinions it is based on my experience.

Your premise is wrong, so anecdotal and worthless as an argument then -Have you no idea how to put forward an argument??

2 hours ago, josephbloggs said:

Like all opinions it is based on my experience. No, I haven’t personally done a safety survey of all Thai ferries in operation, but I have used many and I maintain that Seatran probably operates the safest vessels in Thailand. 
 

what’s your issue with that opinion? and then tell me your opinion and exactly what evidence your opinion is based on, thank you. 

You are clearly not capable of a reasoned discussion on the topic.

7 minutes ago, kwilco said:

You are clearly not capable of a reasoned discussion on the topic.

Wow, you have really escalated this. From a personal opinion that Seatran are good into guff about “reasoned argument”, “worthless anecdotes” etc. You are obviously a very bored orc lonely man with not much going on in your life to pick on something so trivial. 
 

i didn’t make any great claims that should be challenged, just said in my experience Seatran operate the safest vessels. 
 

Run along and play somewhere. Or get a hobby. 
 

Oh and you didn’t counter with anything, no reasoned argument, nothing. So really not sure what your point is. 
 

I have better things to do so unless you have a different experience to discuss I’m out. Yawn. 

14 minutes ago, josephbloggs said:

Wow, you have really escalated this. From a personal opinion that Seatran are good into guff about “reasoned argument”, “worthless anecdotes” etc. You are obviously a very bored orc lonely man with not much going on in your life to pick on something so trivial. 
 

i didn’t make any great claims that should be challenged, just said in my experience Seatran operate the safest vessels. 
 

Run along and play somewhere. Or get a hobby. 
 

Oh and you didn’t counter with anything, no reasoned argument, nothing. So really not sure what your point is. 
 

I have better things to do so unless you have a different experience to discuss I’m out. Yawn. 

QED - and you even know!

5 hours ago, josephbloggs said:

Seatrans are excellent, probably the safest and most reputable ferry company in Thailand (not that that's saying much).
 

I used two of Seatrans ferries a couple of weeks back and they were, quite frankly, scary. As i lived on Samui for some time I use both the mainland vehicle ferries many times and with a lot of trepidation. I've spent  a lot of time on ferries around the world notably the Spirit of Free Enterprise - you then spent a lot of time looking to see what makes a boat safe in the event of a mishap and the Seatrans I went on did not inspire confidence.

The design of some of the boats and the vehicle decks would not be acceptable in many countries the life jackets were not properly accessible  I've ever seen thm moving with the loading doors open.

 

I don't know how often these boats are inspected, but I do know how insectors are "treated".

13 hours ago, Snig27 said:

 

As we know, they are not even that stringent in the navy, with ships sinking in the gulf in still unexplained ways. 

Not to mention the recent incidents with navy ships shooting at each other. Oh my God guys, look it's a Burmese ship, they finally invaded. So that's why we are in existence. We all wondered. Oh wait, no I think that's a Vietnamese flag isn't it? We are surrounded by hostiles! We need subs! 

11 hours ago, CHdiver said:

I guess that means the company will get a stern warning. Would the fire have been at the bow, they would have to bow to the authorities. Justice made easy 555

 

ok, I will now go and fetch my hat.

i nearly keeled over reading that.

A ferry that has possibly seen a lot of nautical miles and little real maintenance.. the inevitable happens.

amazing how everyone just standing above the fire... don't even think about getting to the other side of the boat.. I hope nobody got hurt, crap infrastructure scares me.  Don't even like taking internal flights anymore.  

Yep.
I always lug my own inflatable life vest and a 10 lit waterproof bag on Thai boats. Just updated from online retailer about B500 all in. Scrunches down to shoebox size.

23 hours ago, Photoguy21 said:

With all the "blazing" into action, wouldnt it be better to check and ensure safety standards before the boat leaves the dock? Proper regular safety checks. Not up to standard not allowed out until all issues have been rectified to a good (international) standard.

Impossible if you want a $1.50 cent ticket.

All the ferries here and all of SE Asia come from South Korea and Japan. They sink all the time. Its why its cheap.

29 minutes ago, rexpotter said:

Impossible if you want a $1.50 cent ticket.

Shouldn't be impossible if you have the will for safety but it is obvious they don't have that.