Govt operated ferries-Captains, crews previously disciplined for safety breaches, drug use, misconduct – Edghill

As the captain and some of his crew members remain in police custody following the MV Barima tragedy, Public Works Minister Juan Edghill has confirmed that disciplinary actions have been taken in the past against other seafarers found guilty of misconduct. “I can tell you, sir, that captains and members of his crew have been disciplined for infractions of various kinds of all of the vessels, whether its for alcohol, drugs, misconduct, carrying family members on unauthorisedly, transporting illegal substances on behalf of people, storing passengers or cargo without proper freight, all of that,” Edghill informed a news conference on Tuesday night. He emphasised that “there’s a system where these vessels are inspected before departure”. Asked whether such inspection was conducted on the MV Barima before its departure on Saturday, the Public Works Minister noted that the investigation into the circumstances surrounding the tragedy will uncover what transpired. At the press conference, Prime Minister (PM) Mark Phillips acknowledged that “obviously, there was some breakdown in the system.”
“We want the inquiry to go and investigate the extent of those breakdowns in the system and of course, they will recommend to us, not only disciplinary measures but areas where we can tighten and improve on the existing systems,” he added.

Enforcement
At a press conference on Monday, PM Phillips had said authorities will intensify enforcement of maritime regulations governing all vessels operating on the country’s waterways. “Moving forward with all the ferries, we will revamp the system and ensure that we stick to the regulations. There are SOPs for loading, there are SOPs for ticketing…we will ensure that all those SOPs are gone over again with the crew member and enforced,” the PM had noted. This assurance came amid the discovery that the MV Barima had more passengers than the manifest detailed, and that the captain and a crew member tested positive for marijuana use.
PM Phillips noted that the duo remains in police custody and counselling has been offered to them. No other arrests were made. In addition to the drug use, preliminary investigations discovered that there were discrepancies with the passengers manifest. Initially, it was reported that there were 116 passengers along with 17 crew members on board the vessel, but that figure was on Sunday night ruled as not precise by authorities, who noted that the manifest was inaccurate. It is now estimated that the MV Barima had 179 occupants when it went down.
Already, a probe has been launched, examining all of the facts and circumstances surrounding this tragedy, including the accuracy of the passenger manifest, the loading of passengers and cargo, compliance with maritime safety regulations and the conduct of the captain and crew before and during the voyage.