Pattaya Ferry Accident Kills Several, Captain Admits To Using Drugs Before Work

A Pattaya ferry accident killed several people in Thailand and the captain admits to using drugs before work.

As previously reported by The Inquisitr, Thailand recently dealt with an oil spill off Samet Island.

Pattaya police said that among the dead from the Pattaya ferry accident are two Russians, a Chinese national and three Thais. Also among the confirmed dead were two unidentified passengers. 19 people in total were injured.

The ferry, named “Koh Lan Travel 1,” capsized and sank, leaving passengers swimming in the ocean before rescue teams could reach them. There were 150 passengers.

At 9 PM it was reported that from 9 passengers sent to Bangkok Pattaya Hospital, 3 were dead. Of 15 passengers sent to Pattaya Memorial Hospital, 3 were dead. Navy divers are now looking for the missing passengers:

“We pulled 60 people from the water, including a Russian boy. We gave him CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) but he was in a very bad way.”

Rescuers and those present recount the scene of the accident:

“The boat went down in minutes. I saw people some with life jackets, some without, in the water. One man was holding on to a gas cylinder. There was a body face down in the water. They were all panicking, shouting for help. I saw 100 people, most of them foreigners, in the water. I threw 50 life jackets into the water. There was one man, he was not breathing. We pulled him out of the water.”

Pattaya police chief Colonel Suwarn Chiewnawintawat discusses the accident:

“We don’t expect to find any more dead. One Russian boy is seriously ill in intensive care, the captain ran away. We will issue an arrest warrant for him, divers will recover the boat today. We still don’t know the cause.”

Yesterday, the 42 year old ferry captain Saman Kwanmuang,turned himself in and admitted to taking drugs before going to work. Mr. Kwanmuang told police that the ferry wandered off course and hit some rocks, causing the vessel to capsize. The captain admitted he did not alert passengers as he should have and did no have enough life jackets for all passengers.

Many are blaming Thailand’s allegedly dismal safety standards, claiming this is why accidents are common. A worker from Europe in the local marine tourism industry had little good to say of local industry standards:

“After an accident like this the boats should be grounded for checks but today they are all running. The boats are very old. There’s no maintenance. They are always overcrowded… there’s no head count.”

Chinese and European diplomats are noticing how many of their tourists seem to be getting into accidents, putting further pressure on the situation. A similar incident occurred in May when more than 100 people were rescued from a sinking ferry off of Phuket. Another accident in Phuket went high profile when four people died in a nightclub fire.

So what do you think; up for a trip to Thaliand? Bring your safety gear and watch out for another Pattaya ferry accident…