Phasakorn Channgam
Less than 24 hours before two Chinese tourists would die in yet
another speedboat accident, Pattaya city and Marine Department officials
had met with more than 100 boat operators to again the stress the
importance of safety.
Raewat Potriang, director of
the Pattaya Marine Department, lectures boat owners on safety just 24
hours before the Aug. 28 deadly speedboat crash.
The Aug. 27 meeting hosted by Pattaya Deputy Mayor
Ronakit Ekasingh, Marine Department Director Raewat Potriang and Marine
Police Superintendent Col. Namaskarn Nikolhaeng actually had been the
second such marine-safety meeting that week. On Aug. 21, Pattaya City
Councilman Sanit Boonmachai, the president of the Pattaya Tour Boat
Operators Club, met with operators at city hall to inspect boat
registrations and captains’ licenses, as well as urge boat to keep their
equipment well maintained.
Apparently, the message of neither meeting reached the right ears.
On Aug. 28, two Chinese tourists died and eight were injured when their
speedboat crashed into an anchored longtail boat off Bali Hai Pier. The
boat driver, now arrested, steered his twin-engine craft too close to
the empty glass-bottom boat, snagging its anchor line, causing it to
smash into the longtail and eject half the passengers.
The Aug. 27 meeting was described as “training” for boat operators in
fire prevention and control after a boat caught fire Aug. 18 about three
kilometers off the Pattaya coast. No one was hurt, but Ronakit said the
accident helped to reinforce a perception among foreign tourists that
Pattaya’s beaches and seas are unsafe.
Proof that perception proved reality came less than a day later.
The training session covered traffic patterns in Pattaya and Koh Larn,
maintenance and inspection of boats, preparation of safety equipment,
the need to inform authorities of emergencies, fire extinguisher use,
water rescue, and the prohibitions against boat crews abusing drugs and
alcohol.
Only time will tell if any of the “training” took hold.
