How Safe Is Boat Travel To Samui, Phangan & Koh Tao ?

[Barolo69]

How safe is Boat travel to Koh Phangan ??

At 9pm on Wednesday 13th August, I went to meet some friends off one of the two Raja car ferries coming to the Lomprayah pier in Thongsala, one the 6.30 from Samui (very late again), the other the last boat from Suratthani. The weather was warm calm seas, no wind and clear skys showing a 3/4 moon.

I was waiting at the pier with about 40 taxis with drivers, all of them waiting to force themselves upon the poor tired relentless Ferang arriving on the island for the forth coming Full Moon Party, When all of a sudden there was a almighty bang and crash with the sound of metal bending and twisting against the concrete pillars that support the pier, and the whole pier shook. Yes, once again the boat came in too fast and couldn't stop in time and slammed into the pier causing so much damage to the boat, that it had twisted the metal between the boat and the ramp that comes down from the boat to the pier, to let the passengers and the cargo off.

When they tried to drop the ramp, nothing, it was jammed shut tight. So they spent the next twenty minutes scratching heads and blaming each other for yet another accident. Then some bright spark decided to get a chain and some pulleys and try and force it apart by looping the chain around the corner of the damaged part of the ramp and then the other end to the concrete pier post it crashed into.

Good idea ?? No, the chain was only about one inch thick so when 5 Thai guys started to pull on the chain it snapped in about 6 seconds flat as soon as it went tight. Do you think that a one inch chain pulling a 1000 tonne car ferry full of lorries, cars and foot passengers would work? No, me too. But the Thais engineers thought so.

The next thing we see is the ropes being released and the boat going backwards, ok the ramp won't open, turn the boat around and let everybody off the back end, Yes ?? NO !!!!!!!

What they had actually done is to loop a massive thick old rope around the ramp, then tie off the ends to the pier either side of the boat, then stick the boat in full reverse without warning anybody around and see if that will work. As soon as I saw what was happening I dived for cover as did about 80 other people around me, because if that rope had snapped it was heading straight to the pier and all the waiting people. Whiplash being an understatement if it snapped.

After about three attempts at full reverse and with everyone cowering and hiding behind the nearest taxi it finally gave way with cheers and shouts from all as the ramp freed it's self from the boat.

Just as the ramp was being lowered, the second boat from Suratthani was just attempting to dock next to the first one, when once again on the same night a Raja boat hit the Pier, what the hel_l is going on with these boat captains, too much Redbull me thinks. Luckly for Raja not much damage on the second accident, I also witnessed a captain from the Lomprayah the previous day slurping Redbull on deck like it was water.

Do the owners of these boat actually know what the hel_l is going on and is anyone in charge of the boat not on Redbull or any other mind altering beverage or worse. With the amount of money these people earn from us the poor unsuspecting Ferang you would think they would show a bit more responsibility.

The worst thing is, is that we visit the islands, and at some point we have to use these boats to get off or go to the next island, which one would you trust ?????

I hear that kayak hire is cheap to hire in the low season.

[JetsetBkk]

Never been on one of those boats and never will. A disaster waiting to happen.

[Boater]

i travel often on them, as i have no other option if you need to take a car off the island.

but i did note a while back, that alot of the safty card records on the side of the ships where 3 years out of date and the Life Jacket container was pad locked shut ...

[girlx]

i was never in my life scared of boats until after i had a couple of bad experiences on koh phangan.... badly maintained boats with poorly trained staff, either no lifejackets or they are locked up!!! overloaded, go out in bad weather, etc. the only boat i trust is the lomprayah catamaran. even the kayaks that are for rent are not to be trusted!!! i have seen a few people be rescued after they sank!

Edited August 14, 2008 by girlx

[Ulysses G.]

I have to admit that one of the only times I was frightened on a boat was on one of these babies!

[12DrinkMore]

Never been on one of those boats and never will. A disaster waiting to happen.

Already happened many times. Tourists die every year due to overloading, incompetence and bad maintenance.

[sriracha john]

What they had actually done is to loop a massive thick old rope around the ramp, then tie off the ends to the pier either side of the boat, then stick the boat in full reverse without warning anybody around and see if that will work. As soon as I saw what was happening I dived for cover as did about 80 other people around me, because if that rope had snapped it was heading straight to the pier and all the waiting people. Whiplash being an understatement if it snapped.

Witnessed a snapback (the proper terminology for a rope under tension breaking) as a Navy frigate was coming into port in Guam. It caused the traumatic amputation of a 320 pound Samoan dock worker's leg at the hip. The rope cut through this massive man's leg like a hot knife through butter... with a sound when the rope parted like a Howitzer artillery round going off.

Ropes parting in a snapback can reach speeds of 700 feet per second.

Edited August 14, 2008 by sriracha john

[frankman]

I always take a floating-matress in my pocket.

Swimming away fom the wreckage, and people, and than blow it up and wait for rescue.

Never had to try, but it makes me feel safe.

Saw the carferry three times on ground, seatran ones, songserm with no propeller for hours, a dive-speedboat exploding and the nightboat on the rif.

Lohmprhiya, so far, so good. But never without my air-matress.

[lazeeboy]

about 5 years ago i was on the ferry ,my car was right at the front of the boat ,the water was rough and the water was coming in in the boat and coving my car with water ,there was at least a foot of water at the front of the boat ,took ages to dry the inside of the car .i dont think the smell of sea water ever came out of the car,that was a scary crossing...