Two Marine Department officials have told a court inquest that they failed to notice a design flaw in a ferry involved in one of Hong Kong’s deadliest maritime disasters as they thought they were not required to look for such issues during periodical check-ups.
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The Coroner’s Court on Monday heard oral evidence from three current and former ship inspectors who were involved in checks on the Lamma IV between 1997 and 2009 before it collided with another ferry and sank on October 1, 2012.
The Lamma IV was hit by the Sea Smooth ferry in the waters off Lamma Island while carrying 124 HK Electric employees and their relatives to watch National Day fireworks over Victoria Harbour.
The Lamma Island-bound Sea Smooth, operated by Hong Kong and Kowloon Ferry, was able to continue its journey to Yung Shue Wan Pier, but the Lamma IV sank in less than two minutes, leading to 39 deaths.
The court previously heard that the Lamma IV’s initial design from 1995 involved six compartments on the underdeck, with the steering gear compartment and the tank room at the stern separated by a watertight bulkhead.
Lo Ngok-ying, a director at Cheoy Lee Shipyards which built the Lamma IV, later decided to introduce a hatch connecting the two rooms without a watertight door to comply with what he thought was a legal requirement on the minimal size of underdeck rooms.