Overloaded Ferry Sinks In Samut Prakan, Killing 3

[george]

Ferry sinks in central Thailand, killing 3

BANGKOK: -- An overloaded ferry in Thailand's central Samut Prakan Province sank in the gulf of Thailand late Sunday, killing three persons, local radio reported.

The long boat, whose rated load was only 15 persons, carried 37 persons while it crashed with an underwater telegraph pole near Samut Prakan Province, some 60 kilometers from Bangkok.

The ferry totally sank after the bump, the FM 100 Traffic Radio said.

A local police was quoted as saying that the rescuers have found all the three missing passengers soon after the accident, while all the other passengers were saved.

All the passengers, including Japanese, Indonesian, Bangladeshi and Thai nationals, were teachers and graduate students from the famous Chulalongkorn University. An Indonesian female student were among the three killed.

[Scott]

Condolences to the family, friends and classmates of those who perished.

[YangYaiEric]

Condolences to the family, friends and classmates of those who perished.

Very sad indeed. What a waste of such young,potential talent. But why was the boat overloaded in the first place? Heads should roll!

[cloudhopper]

...and I suppose the crew has done the usual runner.

[lazeeboy]

...and I suppose the crew has done the usual runner.

when are these boat owners going to learn

[Briggsy]

This doesn't sound like a ferry to me. From where to where? The only ferries I can think of in Samut Prakan cross the Chao Phraya river. What ferries leave from Samut Prakan and enter the Gulf of Thailand?

Add to this the fact that this was a group and it sounds like a chartered trip into the Gulf.

What is an underwater telegraph pole, may I ask?

[KhaoNiaw]

This doesn't sound like a ferry to me. From where to where? The only ferries I can think of in Samut Prakan cross the Chao Phraya river. What ferries leave from Samut Prakan and enter the Gulf of Thailand?

Add to this the fact that this was a group and it sounds like a chartered trip into the Gulf.

What is an underwater telegraph pole, may I ask?

And the ferries that cross the river aren't long boats either.

[thaiman]

...and I suppose the crew has done the usual runner.

when are these boat owners going to learn

no, when are the passengers going to learn. this is the third world with very bad standards with many things, including safety. Placing trust in those who take crazy risks, like overloading a boat, is taking a bit of chance. Customers should exercise more caution. I highly doubt they were forced on the boat.

[seonai]

Indonesian casualty of boat sinking to be sent home

SAMUT PRAKAN, Nov 5 (TNA) – The Secretary of the Indonesian Embassy to Thailand received the body of an Indonesian student who died in the capsizing of a long-tail boat in Samut Prakan late Sunday, killing three passengers, including two Thais.

The Indonesian victim was identified as Lino Kalady Kiyato, a male student. The two Thai victims were Nonglak Paiboon and Wiman Vetchakul.

Meanwhile, police issued a summons to the boat captain for questioning.

The long-tailed boat carrying 37 passengers--from Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok in an activity including postgraduates, and researchers from Australia, Japan, Indonesia and Vietnam.

The cruise was a part of workshop to study about coastal erosion.

The boat collided with a submerged electrical power pole and sank immediately, as it was overloaded. (TNA) E110

General News : Last Update : 11:26:24 5 November 2550 (GMT+7:00)

MCOT English News by Thai News Agency

[Tony Clifton]

...and I suppose the crew has done the usual runner.

when are these boat owners going to learn

no, when are the passengers going to learn. this is the third world with very bad standards with many things, including safety. Placing trust in those who take crazy risks, like overloading a boat, is taking a bit of chance. Customers should exercise more caution. I highly doubt they were forced on the boat.

Complacent authorities are more like it.

Look at the circus on the roads to begin with.

[Bagwan]

...and I suppose the crew has done the usual runner.

when are these boat owners going to learn

no, when are the passengers going to learn. this is the third world with very bad standards with many things, including safety. Placing trust in those who take crazy risks, like overloading a boat, is taking a bit of chance. Customers should exercise more caution. I highly doubt they were forced on the boat.

TIT. Nobody will take responsibility. It's all an honest mistake.

Anywhere else the captain of a ship or aircraft, the driver of a vehicle is accountable when things go wrong.

I note that overloading the boat did not cause the accident.

[gharknes]

the blame here could also be with those responsible for keeping the water way safe from hazzards, i have noticed even off the coast of pattaya there are objects protruding just above the surface, obviously something that sank and was never made safe, night sailing is an absolute no no

very sad indeed

[ZukiSuzuki]

Tragic.

[PadThaiGuy]

What is an underwater telegraph pole, may I ask?

Somthing like this...only under the water...

[John K]

The sad part about this is if I were on that boat and I saw it was being overloaded, I would get out. Seeing that the operator would put another person in to replace me, and do the same for each boat after that. I can’t see much you can do except put a sign up with the boats capacity, that the operator would promptly make invisible.

[belidofan]

another hugh blame for the notorious chulalongkorn; they would be my first target if a relative/friend of mine were amongst the victims