70 injured as Hong Kong high-speed ferry crashes in Macau
TurboJet high-speed jetfoil crashed into breakwater as it entered Macau's harbour; one crew member 'seriously injured'
PUBLISHED : Friday, 13 June, 2014, 12:27pm
UPDATED : Friday, 13 June, 2014, 3:56pm
Clifford Lo [email protected]
The high-speed ferry was carrying 220 people when it hit the breakwater at about 9.30am after departing Hong Kong about an hour earlier. Photo: SCMP Pictures
Seventy people were injured, some seriously, when a high-speed ferry carrying 220 passengers and 13 crew members from Hong Kong slammed into a breakwater off the main ferry pier in Macau on Friday morning.
The TurboJet ferry, Cacilhas, mounted the breakwater before listing to its right at about 9.30am, according to Macau’s marine and water bureau.
The 45 men and 25 women, aged 17 to 69, reported as injured include 59 Hong Kong residents, four Korean tourists, one Japanese visitor, two Thailand travellers and four Macau residents, according to Macau's health department. Nine crew members were among those hurt, the department said.
“The injured were conscious while being sent to hospital," a department spokesman said. "An initial assessment showed they suffered minor injuries, mainly bruises and abrasions.”
A spokesman for operator TurboJet said one crew member suffered "serious injuries" to the waist, while 50 of the injured have been discharged from hospital.
“An initial investigation showed a hole was broken in the bow of the vessel and the engines could be seen through the hole,” a spokeswoman for the marine and water bureau said.
“After the crash, the vessel listed to one side, ran aground and slightly took in water.”
The spokeswoman said there was a high tide at the time of the incident and the breakwater might have been submerged.
An injured woman sent to hospital. Photo: SCMP Pictures
At least four rescue boats were dispatched to evacuate passengers from the jetfoil. They were ferried to the inner harbour ferry terminal and a temporary pier at Taipa, the smaller of the two islands in Macau.
One male passenger recalled hearing several loud noises before the boat began listing to one side. “It stopped in the middle of sea,” he said.
Paramedics assessed the injured at the ferry terminal and the Taipa pier before sending them to a local hospital.
The Macau government said they would launch an investigation into the cause of the incident.
The Macau-bound jetfoil left the Hong Kong-Macau ferry terminal in Sheung Wan at about 8.30am.
The incident occurred as it entered Macau’s inner harbour at about 9.30am.
TurboJet said the ferry was travelling at a speed of 64km/h at the time of the incident. Weather conditions were said to be fine.
The Cacilhas received its last annual inspection in July last year and the captain had 34 years of sailing experience on the same type of vessel, according to the operator.
At least 10 incidents where ferries collided with other ships, buoys, or docks have been reported in the past few years. The most serious occurred when a Hongkong Electric boat collided with a ferry off Lamma Island in October 2012, resulting in 39 killed and 92 injured. It was the the deadliest boat accident in Hong Kong in over 40 years.
Relatives of passengers killed in the Lamma ferry tragedy announced last month that they were preparing to sue the government for compensation and the right to see in full a damning internal report into the disaster.
The government released a summary in April, pinpointing misconduct by 17 unnamed officials and "suspected criminality" as well as "serious systemic failings" in the Marine Department.
In May, more than 30 people were injured when a high-speed ferry also operated by Shun Tak and carrying 162 passengers collided with a mainland cargo ship in waters off Cheung Chau ferry pier. That collision followed another incident in November in which a ferry bound for Macau apparently hit some kind of refuse in the water, causing it to suddenly stop and injuring 87 people.
TurboJet has established emergency hotlines – 852 2859 3333(Hong Kong) and 853 2870 3661(Macau) – for today's incident.
Notable recent ferry crashes
May 21, 2014
Ferry bound for Macau from Hong Kong collides with cargo ship near Cheung Chau, injuring 37 people about 30 minutes into its journey.
November 29, 2013
Ferry bound for Macau from Hong Kong hits unidentified debris about 15 minutes after leaving Hong Kong, injuring 87 when the boat comes to a sudden halt.
December 30, 2012
Ferry bound for Hong Kong from Macau collides with buoy about 15 minutes after leaving macau, injuring 26, some as young as four years old.
October 1, 2012
Hong Kong Electric ferry Lamma IV from Lamma to Central collides with another ferry bound for Yung Shue Wan, killing 39 on the Lamma ferry and injuring a total of 92 on both boats.
October 21, 2011
Ferry from Cheung Chau bound for Central crashes into a mooring pillar five minutes after setting off from the outlying island, injuring 76 commuters, some critically.
November 5, 2009
Ferry from Tsim Sha Tsui collides with sand barge in Panyu, killing two ferry passengers and injuring nine more.
January 12, 2008
Two Hong Kong-Macau jetfoils crash near Macau, trapping 435 passengers inside vessels for three hours. Total of 135 injured.
March 22, 2008
Oil rig supply ship Neftegaz-67 capsizes and sinks after colliding with larger dry cargo bulk carrier Yao Hai near the Brothers islands off Lantau, killing 18 crew.
June 20, 2006
New World First Ferry from Macau to Hong Kong collides with boat from mainland as it leaves pier in Macau. Boat sinks. About 100 passengers and crew saved.
February 17, 2005
Boat to mainland collides with mainland vessel at Kap Shui Mun. Total of 102 people injured.
July 29, 2002
Eight-year-old girl and man die after motorised sampan with 14 people aboard hit by motorboat off Sha Lo Wan, Lantau Island. Twelve people on sampan seriously hurt.
