Maritime Administration (CA) Director Susana Wong Soi Man said at the CA headquarters Sunday that as a result of the ferry crash on December 29 in which 26 people on a jetfoil were injured, the government might take measures to ensure passenger safety by enforcing the use seatbelts during ferry trips.
Wong said that the Maritime Administration would talk to the city’s ferry companies on possible ways to improve the safety of passengers on their vessels.
She also explained why some of the fleet do not have seatbelts. “For catamarans, the front row has seatbelts. But for jetfoils, seatbelts are on all the seats… because jetfoils are usually very fast so there would be a bigger impact if they had to come to a sudden stop,” said Wong.
“But should we tighten up our measures [on seatbelts] as public attitudes and demands change? I think we need to talk to the companies and then decide what to do,” Wong was quoted by The Macau Post Daily as saying.
Wong added that the investigation into the cause of last month’s accident was still underway, adding that the Maritime Administration was working with Hong Kong’s Marine Department as the jetfoil was registered in Hong Kong even though the accident took place in Macau waters.
She added that the Maritime Administration would keep in touch with shipping companies and other government entities involved in rescue operations to find better ways of tackling maritime accidents.(macaunews)
