85 Hurt in Hong Kong Ferry Collision

Nov. 28, 2013 8:50 p.m. ETHONG KONG—More than 80 passengers were injured when their Macau-bound high-speed jetfoil collided with an unknown object just west of Hong Kong’s Victoria Harbour.
The Hong Kong government said at least three of the 85 people who were sent to hospitals were in serious condition. Most passengers suffered injuries from the force of the impact.
The ferry, operated by Shun Tak-China Travel Ship Management Ltd., was carrying around 105 people en route to the gambling mecca of Macau from Hong Kong when the collision happened at about 1:20 a.m. Friday local time, the government said. Local television footage showed many passengers being carried into ambulances on stretchers after the ferry was towed back to port.
The ferry operator said the jetfoil, which is equipped with radar, was traveling at its normal cruising speed of 38-40 knots (43-46 miles per hour). It said it was unclear what the ferry collided with in the pitch dark of night, and added there was no visible damage to the jetfoil. The operator also said it was likely the seriously injured passengers weren’t wearing seat belts, which are installed on all seats.
The Hong Kong-Macau ferry route is one of the busiest in the world, with jetfoils plying the one-hour journey as frequently as every 15 minutes during the day. Services are around the clock. Other high-speed ferries also crisscross Hong Kong’s waters to the city’s outlying islands as well as to cities in mainland China.
The increase in high-speed ferry traffic has contributed to more frequent accidents in the busy waters off Hong Kong in recent years, according to maritime experts.
In October last year, a high-speed commuter ferry operating within Hong Kong collided with a boat packed with families on a pleasure trip, killing 39 people, in Hong Kong’s worst maritime disaster in four decades.
Just months earlier, a Hong Kong-Macau jetfoil slammed into a speedboat, killing the small boat’s operator.
In October 2011, nearly 80 people were injured when a catamaran crashed into a concrete pillar minutes after leaving the pier on one of Hong Kong’s many outlying islands.
Still, Hong Kong remains one of the world’s safest maritime hubs, given tough regulations on ship maintenance and port management, according to experts.
Write to Jeffrey Ng at jeffrey.ng@wsj.com

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