Top Thai cop talks tough about Phuket marine safety

[Lite Beer]

Top Thai cop talks tough about Phuket marine safety
Saran Mitrarat

Lt Gen Ruangsak: Officers are doing all they can to find the two missing people.

PHUKET: Pol Lt Gen Ruangsak Jaritake Assistant to the National Police Commissioner, today visited tourists injured in yesterday’s speedboat collision and to be briefed by officers working on finding two people still missing after the crash.

Gen Ruangsak flew into Phuket at about 2:30 and immediately went into a meeting with Phuket police.

In the meeting, police decided they will enforce marine safety rules more stringently, and that officials must work more efficiently together to keep tourists in boats safe.

Gen Ruangsak explained that this would be done in four ways:

Officials dealing with marine transportation must work together and be stricter. The required number of officials and officers must be on duty at all times.
Life jackets must be ready to use and must be worn all the time by passengers. “They must not just be used to decorate the boats,” Gen Ruangsak said.

“The helmsman or captain of each boat must be checked for sobriety and to ensure he has the correct license. If not, the boat will not be allowed to depart.

“The communication machinery of government offices, the private sector and navigation aids must all be fully linked so that action can be taken whenever there is an emergency or when an SOS is received.”

He added, “More suggestions are welcome. Please call 1196.”

After the meeting the general was driven to Phuket to visit the injured.

“At this moment, all of the injured people are recovering,” Gen Ruangsak told members of the press.

“[At the airport meeting] we also talked about the search for the two Koreans who are missing after the accident on Sunday evening. I want to thank everybody who has supported us in the search,” Gen Ruangsak said.

Two boats from the Marine Police are searching a 10-mile radius around the crash site, aided by a helicopter from the Third Naval Area Command and a variety of volunteers including crews of local fishing boats.

“All officers are doing their best to find them,” Gen Ruangsak said.

Source: http://www.thephuketnews.com/top-thai-cop-talks-tough-about-phuket-marine-safety-49238.php

-- Phuket News 2014-10-20

[Briggsy]

No prosecutions or thorough investigations then. No? I didn't think so.

[TheCruncher]

The topic title says it all. TALKS, a lot actually.

[Pattaya28]

Hilarious nonsense.

The horse has bolted. The stable doors are meaningless.

[Soupdragon]

If you want marine safety put someone in charge who cares about safety. The present guy has clearly demonstrated it is not a priority.

[Songhua]

Vetting of railway staff AFTER a young girl is raped and murdered.

More cameras on Koh Tao AFTER two young tourists are murdered.

Properly barricade the dead end of the motorway AFTER a car falls off it.

And now, marine safety measures AFTER tourists are lost at sea due to a collision.

Same same, but same.

[Pattaya28]

Just on Thai news channel.

Speed-boat driver says he rammed the fishing boat because a "piece of paper" blew onto his windscreen, and when he leaned forward and removed it, a fishing boat was immediately in front of him.

Cannot make this stuff up.

[Shot]

[slapout]

A lot of manpower could be put to better use pursueing those guilty of illegal actions/inactions, if taped recording were on file with changes/improvement action suggested and a nicely presented photo of whoever is on call that day., being handed out for publication/newsprint.

We have heard the same spin on motorcycle helmets, speeding, drinking drug use mobil phone use, etc while driving. Fire safety/building regulations for commercial establishments, aircraft, train, bus, etc maintance. Training/schooling of operators of all motorized vehicles. training of police, teachers, students, politicans, doctors, farmers, prosititues as well as enforcement of penalties for illegal acts and/or knowledge of same committed by anyone of them.

Looks like 1/2 the population should be in some type of improvement program to do their job and the majority of the other 1/2 of the population, in jail for illegal activity or watching it happen by now, if all the proposed actions were implemented

I just hope the military in charge at present can convience the people that people can be trained to do a job and take responsibility to ensure it is done as was the intent of those working to improve the broken system as it has existed, and in many cases still does..

[starkey_rich]

If you want marine safety put someone in charge who cares about safety. The present guy has clearly demonstrated it is not a priority.

You took the words right out of my mouth.

Have not seen any comment from him yet.

Probably out seeing how many more jet skis he can fit on the beaches.

[jaywalker]

Just on Thai news channel.

Speed-boat driver says he rammed the fishing boat because a "piece of paper" blew onto his windscreen, and when he leaned forward and removed it, a fishing boat was immediately in front of him.

Cannot make this stuff up.

First I've heard as to a reason why this happened. My guess it was one of 2 reasons.

1 - The speedboat driver was high as a kite & passed out at the wheel, and/or speeding in a crowded area.

2 - Something like the steering cable or throttle cable broke due lack of maintenance/negligence/installed a 3rd motor on a dual motor steering system...again, negligence by both the owner & skipper.

It happened in broad daylight, so it had to be one of the two methinks.

This explanation points to #1.

[kurnell]

Ask any thai how good they/Thais are and you'll hear gaeng maak!! Ask them why nothing ever gets done, there is no safety, rampant corruption etc and oh hooiiiee, you no unnerstan Thailand!

[steelepulse]

If you want marine safety put someone in charge who cares about safety. The present guy has clearly demonstrated it is not a priority.

This guy should have been sacked a long time ago for dereliction of duty. We know that won't happen, but at least a transfer to Nakon Nowhere where he can oversee rice fields.

[klauskunkel]

The helmsman or captain of each boat must be checked for sobriety and to ensure he has the correct license. If not, the boat will not be allowed to depart.

So, a breathalyzer test before leaving the pier, and then they can break out the lao khao...

[SOTIRIOS]

...if you call off a search for people on water.....what do you think the outcome will be.....???

[atyclb]

A chain is only as strong as its weakest link.

if society is largely incompetent even if a few are competent and mean well nothing will change.

Edited October 21, 2014 by atyclb

[eezergood]

Talk is cheap, lets see some action?

[Halion]

Incident after incident we get the same crap from these buffoons, Talk tough ,crackdown,probe full investigation, and bloody nothing is done as is the Thai way, talk loudly but act slowly if at all.

Furthermore the excuses are lamentable. Such a craft would be hard pushed to do 20 Knots which is approx 35 feet/second and he can not see a bloody fishing boat at 4pm even in bad weather.

With a five second distraction which is enormous the craft would only have traveled 175 feet or 54 meters. Simply logic is the fact that if you did not have 50 meters visibility what the hell are you doing traveling at such speed.

Ignorant idiots with no social conscience.

[Strangebrew]

I got a better idea since Thai's seem to be able to screw up a wet dream, why not let farangs who are better equiped to understand the meaning of "safety" run all tourist related businesses This alone would boost tourism Let the Thai's stick to what they do best Blame every one else but themselves for there problems. This would also work for police too fire the lot of them hire Frangs to do it then train Thai's how to be police that are honest.

[spidermike007]

We might want to call 1196, and suggest real enforcement. Follow up, something these guys do not seem to understand is necessary, is necessary to uphold most any law. Not enough to warn these guys. They must face realistic fines, confiscation of their boats where necessary, and prison time, for serious offenses. The law is meant to be a deterrent. They are on the books for good reasons. Use those reasons to maintain the law.