Captain Sentenced to Eight Years In Jail Over 2012 Hong Kong Ferry Disaster

The captain of a passenger ferry has been convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to eight years in jail for his position within the deadly 2012 Lamma ferry catastrophe close to Hong Kong through which 39 folks misplaced their lives.

Captain Lai Sai-ming was Master of the Sea Smooth commuter ferry on October 1, 2012 when it struck the passenger vessel Lamma IV, inflicting the Lamma IV to sink and leading to 39 deaths and over 100 injured.

On Saturday, a jury in Hong Kong convicted Sai on 39 counts of manslaughter and for endangering the security of others at sea.

The Lamma IV was chartered by Hong Kong Electric and used to shuttle workers from to Victoria Harbor from Lamma Island, southwest of Hong Kong Island, for a fireworks show to mark China’s National Day when it was struck on its starboard aspect by the Sea Smooth. The Sea Smooth was additionally broken within the collision, however continued onto its vacation spot.

Meanwhile, the captain of the Lamma IV, Chow Chi-wai, was acquitted of manslaughter expenses however was sentenced to 9 months in jail after being discovered responsible of endangering the security of others at sea.

The Lamma ferry catastrophe is taken into account Hong Kong’s worst maritime catastrophe in additional than 4 many years.