A TurboJet ferry docked in Hong Kong
Approximately 100 people were injured, with six among them seriously hurt, when a high-speed jetfoil heading from Macau towards Hong Kong hit an “unidentified object” last night south of Lantau Island.
According to the South China Morning Post preliminary accounts, the TurboJet ferry lost power following the incident and water began to enter the vessel as passengers clambered for lifejackets in the dark.
“Some people sustained injuries to their jaws, arms and legs,” one passenger told the SCMP on Hong Kong’s Central pier after being pulled to safety by local marine police.
“Some could not even move. The lights suddenly went out. It was chaotic at first but then the passengers managed to calm down soon. Everyone was bleeding. I was injured on my forehead, arms and legs,” the witness told reporters.
According to the paper, police received a call at about 7pm that the ferry – carrying 163 passengers and 11 crew – had slammed into an object near Siu A Chau, one of the Soko Islands.
Photos taken after the collision and circulated on social media showed some passengers sprawling on the ground having been knocked over while others scrambled around trying to don lifejackets, the SCMP article added.
Furthermore, TV footage showed that the first group of passengers rescued by marine police vessels reached the Central ferry piers at around 8.30pm. Some were wearing oxygen masks as they were lifted into ambulances and taken to hospital.
Safety questions will undoubtedly follow as this latest emergency comes just two weeks after a fire broke out in the engine room of a TurboJet ferry from Macau that was carrying 134 passengers – all whom were safely evacuated.
turbojet affected by several incidents
Several ferry incidents in 2014 occurred on the busy route between Hong Kong and Macau. In May, over 30 people were injured after a high-speed TurboJet ferry collided with a cargo ship near Hong Kong. In June, a high-speed ferry from the same company traveling from Hong Kong to Macau crashed into a breakwater, injuring 70 people, one of whom required surgery.
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