https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/rss/274653/feed Thirty-nine people were killed when a boat owned by Hongkong Electric collided with a ferry off Lamma Island on October 1, 2012. The power firm was taking staff to see the National Day fireworks display in Victoria Harbour when disaster struck, plunging more than 100 people into the dark waters. It was the deadliest boat accident in Hong Kong in 40 years. en https://assets-v2.i-scmp.com/production/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg Fiona Chow Fiona Chow Families of victims who died in Hong Kong’s Lamma ferry disaster 14 years ago have withdrawn their application for a judicial review over a coroner’s findings, marking the end of a long legal battle. High Court Judge Queeny Au-yeung Kwai-yue said on Wednesday that the proceedings had ended after the plaintiffs informed the court two days ago they would not continue the legal challenge. The four plaintiffs – Alice Leung Shuk-ling, Leung Ka-yan, Philip Chiu Ping-chuen and Tsui Keung – lodged the... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3361477/families-lamma-ferry-crash-victims-drop-judicial-review-after-legal-aid-denied https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3361477/families-lamma-ferry-crash-victims-drop-judicial-review-after-legal-aid-denied Wed, 22 Jul 2026 10:44:21 +0000 Danny Mok Danny Mok Families of victims who died in Hong Kong’s Lamma ferry disaster 13 years ago have filed an application for a judicial review against a coroner’s findings in an inquest, saying the conclusions showed irrationality and failed to weigh contradictory evidence. Four individuals lodged the application in the High Court on Wednesday. They acted without lawyers. They want the court to quash the coroner’s findings that a missing watertight door on the ill-fated Lamma IV ferry was a deliberate design... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3351053/families-seek-review-coroners-findings-lamma-ferry-disaster-inquest https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3351053/families-seek-review-coroners-findings-lamma-ferry-disaster-inquest Wed, 22 Apr 2026 16:23:48 +0000 Fiona Chow Fiona Chow Relatives of the 39 victims in one of Hong Kong’s deadliest maritime disasters expressed anger after the coroner overseeing an inquest said it was “impractical and unrealistic” for them to expect inspectors could have spotted a missing watertight door if they had examined the ship’s structural drawings. Coroner Monica Chow Wai-choo said on Thursday, the second day of the verdict, that the Marine Department’s officers would not have detected the missing watertight door on the underdeck of the... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3340878/outrageous-families-hong-kong-ferry-crash-victims-fume-over-coroners-remarks https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3340878/outrageous-families-hong-kong-ferry-crash-victims-fume-over-coroners-remarks Thu, 22 Jan 2026 12:41:33 +0000 Brian Wong Brian Wong The design of a ship that sank in a collision with a ferry off Lamma Island in 2012 met the safety standards of the time, a Hong Kong inquest has found, rejecting accusations by relatives of the 39 deceased victims that it was flawed and contributed materially to the city’s worst maritime disaster in decades. The Coroner’s Court on Wednesday returned a verdict of unlawful killing of the 39, pointing to gross negligence by the ships’ two coxswains, while ruling on issues relating to the... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3340629/hong-kong-court-rules-39-victims-lamma-ferry-crash-unlawfully-killed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3340629/hong-kong-court-rules-39-victims-lamma-ferry-crash-unlawfully-killed Wed, 21 Jan 2026 03:17:39 +0000 Fiona Chow Fiona Chow Alice Leung Shuk-ling has spent more than a decade seeking the truth behind a ferry crash in 2012 that killed her younger brother and 38 others, and she expects a Coroner’s Court verdict due on Wednesday to be merely an ellipsis – not a full stop – in her quest. Leung, 40, said she never expected that last year’s 44-day inquest on the Lamma IV crash would unearth all the answers the families of the deceased had demanded for years. But she believed the inquest held a “symbolic meaning” for those... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3340528/hong-kong-inquest-verdict-ferry-crash-will-be-ellipsis-not-full-stop https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3340528/hong-kong-inquest-verdict-ferry-crash-will-be-ellipsis-not-full-stop Tue, 20 Jan 2026 07:29:15 +0000 Brian Wong Brian Wong The Coroner’s Court is expected to deliver a long-awaited verdict on Wednesday for an inquest into one of Hong Kong’s deadliest maritime disasters, in which 39 residents died after a collision between two ferries near Lamma Island in 2012. After the government commissioned an inquiry into the cause of the tragedy later that year, families of victims decided not to take part in the proceedings, citing difficulties in securing legal representation and the expectation that an inquest would occur in... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3340472/hong-kong-set-receive-long-awaited-inquest-verdict-2012-lamma-ferry-crash https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3340472/hong-kong-set-receive-long-awaited-inquest-verdict-2012-lamma-ferry-crash Tue, 20 Jan 2026 02:31:34 +0000 Brian Wong Brian Wong The Coroner’s Court has postponed a long-awaited verdict for an inquest into one of Hong Kong’s deadliest maritime disasters, in which 39 residents died after a collision between two ferries in 2012. The court was slated to make a ruling on Thursday on the underlying causes of the crash, which took place off Lamma Island, that had not been identified by a previous government-appointed inquiry in 2013. A judiciary spokesman confirmed the hearing had been postponed but declined to elaborate. The... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3334928/hong-kong-court-postpones-inquest-verdict-2012-lamma-island-ferry-crash https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3334928/hong-kong-court-postpones-inquest-verdict-2012-lamma-island-ferry-crash Tue, 02 Dec 2025 10:32:57 +0000 Brian Wong Brian Wong A director of a ship company has been accused of lying in a court inquest about a structural flaw that caused a ferry it built to sink in Hong Kong’s deadliest maritime disaster in decades. The Coroner’s Court on Thursday heard oral closing submissions in what could be the last formal inquiry into the ferry collision on October 1, 2012. The Lamma IV was hit by the Sea Smooth catamaran in the waters off Lamma Island while carrying 124 HK Electric employees and their relatives to watch the... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3326033/ship-company-head-accused-lying-2012-hong-kong-lamma-ferry-crash-inquest https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3326033/ship-company-head-accused-lying-2012-hong-kong-lamma-ferry-crash-inquest Thu, 18 Sep 2025 13:52:18 +0000 Brian Wong Brian Wong A former Marine Department official has maintained at a court inquest into one of Hong Kong’s deadliest maritime disasters that he and his colleagues were not obliged to detect structural flaws during regular ship inspections. Retired principal ship surveyor Wong Chi-kin told the Coroner’s Court on Friday that department staff would only inspect specific items on a vessel “by intuition” without looking for possible defects. Wong said ship inspectors would not have realised the lack of a... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3311613/inspectors-did-not-need-look-ship-flaws-hong-kong-disaster-probe-told https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3311613/inspectors-did-not-need-look-ship-flaws-hong-kong-disaster-probe-told Fri, 23 May 2025 13:15:38 +0000 Brian Wong Brian Wong A former engineering manager at the company that built a ferry involved in one of Hong Kong’s deadliest maritime disasters has admitted during a court inquest that he failed to ensure the accuracy of the vessel’s safety data submitted to the government. Cheung Chuen-yau made the comment while testifying at the Coroner’s Court on Friday, the fourth day of what is expected to be a 60-day inquiry into a 2012 maritime disaster that left 39 people dead. Cheung told the court that he was responsible... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3309798/ex-ship-worker-failed-check-safety-data-sunk-hong-kong-ferry-court-hears https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3309798/ex-ship-worker-failed-check-safety-data-sunk-hong-kong-ferry-court-hears Fri, 09 May 2025 11:59:09 +0000 Brian Wong Brian Wong A survivor of Hong Kong’s Lamma Island ferry disaster has told a court inquest that the life jackets were locked away and he was unable to obtain one for himself before his ferry sank following its collision with another vessel. Philip Chiu Ping-chuen, whose sister died in the tragedy, on Thursday became the first witness to provide verbal testimony at the coroner’s inquiry into the accident that took place on October 1, 2012. That night, the Lamma Island-bound Sea Smooth catamaran, operated by... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3309588/hong-kong-ferry-disaster-survivor-says-life-jackets-locked-away-sinking https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3309588/hong-kong-ferry-disaster-survivor-says-life-jackets-locked-away-sinking Thu, 08 May 2025 09:42:08 +0000 Brian Wong Brian Wong A ferry involved in one of Hong Kong’s worst maritime disasters 13 years ago was sailing at high speed before it crashed into another vessel and caused the latter to sink within minutes, a court inquest has heard. The Coroner’s Court heard on Wednesday that the Sea Smooth could have been travelling as fast as 20 knots, or about 37km/h, before the collision with the Lamma IV off the waters of Lamma Island that claimed 39 lives on October 1, 2012. Witnesses also recalled how the Sea Smooth’s... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3309458/boat-involved-hong-kong-ferry-disaster-was-sailing-high-speed-crash https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3309458/boat-involved-hong-kong-ferry-disaster-was-sailing-high-speed-crash Wed, 07 May 2025 12:55:00 +0000 Brian Wong Brian Wong A coroner’s inquest into one of Hong Kong’s worst maritime disasters started on Tuesday, with some survivors complaining that they were never told the location of life-saving apparatus and the means of escape before their ferry sank in the accident 13 years ago. The Coroner’s Court on Tuesday began hearing evidence regarding the circumstances of the 39 deaths caused by a collision between two ferries in waters off Lamma Island on October 1, 2012. The long-overdue hearing was held after two... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3309320/coroners-inquest-begins-2012-hong-kong-lamma-ferry-disaster https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3309320/coroners-inquest-begins-2012-hong-kong-lamma-ferry-disaster Tue, 06 May 2025 16:07:41 +0000 For dozens of Hong Kong families, news of the return of National Day fireworks after a five-year break was not a cause for celebration but instead a painful reminder of the loss and grief they had endured. “My wife drowned while on her way to see the fireworks 11 years ago. How can I enjoy fireworks on the same day?” Wong Tai-wah, 71, said. Wong is among those who lost loved ones in one of Hong Kong’s deadliest maritime disasters in history, which claimed 39 lives on October 1, 2012, when two... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/society/article/3236411/return-national-day-fireworks-stir-painful-memories-2012-lamma-ferry-disaster-hong-kong-families https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/society/article/3236411/return-national-day-fireworks-stir-painful-memories-2012-lamma-ferry-disaster-hong-kong-families Sun, 01 Oct 2023 06:00:15 +0000 Hong Kong, with its famous harbour, free port and more than 250 islands, is inseparable from the sea. The city has a rich maritime history and boat trips are a feature of daily life. It could be a short jaunt on the Star Ferry, a journey to the outlying islands or a pleasure cruise on a junk. Most trips are smooth, efficient and safe. This is why the Lamma ferry disaster, on October 1, 2012, came as such a shock. Two passenger vessels collided on the night of the national day fireworks. It took... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/comment/opinion/article/3230116/inquest-lamma-ferry-disaster-offers-overdue-justice https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/comment/opinion/article/3230116/inquest-lamma-ferry-disaster-offers-overdue-justice Sat, 05 Aug 2023 22:00:19 +0000 The Lamma ferry disaster, in which 39 people including eight young children lost their lives, is one of the worst maritime tragedies in Hong Kong history. More than a decade has passed since the horrific collision between two passenger vessels on October 1, 2012. For many, memories of the tragedy have faded. But the suffering of those who lost loved ones continues. The disaster raised many questions about maritime safety. It sparked a public inquiry and several criminal trials. But after all... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/comment/opinion/article/3229173/inquest-2012-hong-kong-ferry-disaster-necessary-step-bring-closure https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/comment/opinion/article/3229173/inquest-2012-hong-kong-ferry-disaster-necessary-step-bring-closure Thu, 27 Jul 2023 22:15:09 +0000 A long-overdue coroner’s inquest into one of Hong Kong’s worst maritime disasters must help expose systemic issues and uncover the truth behind the ferry collision that claimed 39 lives, the victims’ families have said a day after a court overruled an earlier decision to reject their inquiry bid. But former lawmaker James To Kun-sun, who has been helping the families, on Thursday said justice would only be served if the government released two undisclosed investigation reports to the public. The... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3229095/coroners-inquest-hong-kongs-lamma-iv-disaster-must-expose-systemic-issues-reveal-full-story-ferry https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3229095/coroners-inquest-hong-kongs-lamma-iv-disaster-must-expose-systemic-issues-reveal-full-story-ferry Thu, 27 Jul 2023 06:34:53 +0000 An order by Hong Kong’s High Court on Wednesday to open a coroner’s inquest into one of the city’s worst maritime disasters is a breakthrough in an 11-year battle for justice by families of its victims. One of the plaintiffs, Alice Leung Suk-ling, who lost her brother in the tragedy, said outside the High Court that the ruling made her “very emotional”. “This is the only time I can smile in front of the camera after so many years,” she said. “I was very emotional inside the courtroom, this is... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/society/article/3229047/can-shadow-lamma-iv-disaster-last-be-lifted-post-looks-implications-high-court-ruling-favour-inquest https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/society/article/3229047/can-shadow-lamma-iv-disaster-last-be-lifted-post-looks-implications-high-court-ruling-favour-inquest Thu, 27 Jul 2023 03:00:23 +0000 Hong Kong’s High Court has ordered a coroner’s inquest into one of the city’s worst maritime disasters after it ruled it was in the public interest to subject authorities to scrutiny in a bid to prevent similar deaths in the future. The Court of Appeal on Wednesday overturned a judge’s earlier ruling that an inquiry into the 39 deaths caused by a collision between two ferries in the waters off Lamma Island on October 1, 2012, was not needed. Chief Judge of the High Court Jeremy Poon Shiu-chor... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3228953/hong-kong-court-orders-coroners-inquest-2012-lamma-ferry-crash-killed-39-people-overturning-earlier https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3228953/hong-kong-court-orders-coroners-inquest-2012-lamma-ferry-crash-killed-39-people-overturning-earlier Wed, 26 Jul 2023 05:27:01 +0000 More than 10 years have passed since the Lamma ferry disaster, which claimed 39 lives. But the relatives of victims are still seeking closure. Their bid for an inquest into the tragedy, Hong Kong’s worst maritime accident for decades, ended in failure last week. A judge held that the circumstances and cause had already been established by a commission of inquiry in 2013 and subsequent criminal proceedings. Mr Justice Russell Coleman said the public interest did not require the holding of an... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/comment/opinion/article/3201463/lamma-ferry-tragedy-families-need-closure https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/comment/opinion/article/3201463/lamma-ferry-tragedy-families-need-closure Tue, 29 Nov 2022 22:45:09 +0000 Families of passengers who died in one of Hong Kong’s worst maritime disasters have lost a bid to force the government into disclosing further details of its investigation into the tragedy, after the High Court ruled a coroner’s inquest into the 39 fatalities was not in the public interest. In a written judgment on Thursday, High Court Justice Russell Coleman said no “sufficient evidence” existed to persuade him an inquest should be held, although it was understandable the families would hope to... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3200867/hong-kong-court-rejects-coroners-inquest-bid-2012-lamma-ferry-crash-killed-39-people https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3200867/hong-kong-court-rejects-coroners-inquest-bid-2012-lamma-ferry-crash-killed-39-people Thu, 24 Nov 2022 10:16:54 +0000 This article was first published in the South China Morning Post on October 2, 2012. It has been republished online as part of Hong Kong 25, which looks at how the city has changed since the handover, and what its future holds. By Joyce Ng, Stuart Lau, Danny Mok and Ada Lee At least eight people died and about two dozen were missing after two ferries collided off Lamma Island last night. Some 124 people on the Lamma IV, a vessel owned by Hongkong Electric, were thrown into waters near Yung Shue... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/transport/article/3179300/october-1-2012-deadly-ferry-crash-hong-kongs-lamma-island https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/transport/article/3179300/october-1-2012-deadly-ferry-crash-hong-kongs-lamma-island Tue, 14 Jun 2022 09:30:24 +0000 National Day is one of patriotic pride and celebration. But for dozens of families and many friends, October 1 cannot pass without reliving the grief and horror of one of Hong Kong’s worst maritime disasters. Thirty-nine people including eight children lost their lives when the Lamma ferry collided with a HK Electric ferry taking employees and families to see the National Day fireworks in 2012. Nine years later, those who lost loved ones are still seeking closure. This is after an inquiry made... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/comment/article/3159728/families-2012-hong-kong-ferry-disaster-need-closure https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/comment/article/3159728/families-2012-hong-kong-ferry-disaster-need-closure Wed, 15 Dec 2021 00:00:32 +0000 Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor has rejected calls for the full release of an internal government report on the fatal 2012 Lamma ferry crash, citing privacy concerns in a move that drew scorn from the families of victims. The chief executive on Tuesday said she understood the feelings of relatives, but authorities would not pursue the matter further, nor would they hold an inquest, as judicial proceedings related to the National Day tragedy off Lamma Island that year had... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3158811/hong-kong-leader-carrie-lam-rejects-fresh-calls https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3158811/hong-kong-leader-carrie-lam-rejects-fresh-calls Tue, 07 Dec 2021 13:11:59 +0000 A Hong Kong activist who insisted on taking off her mask to “communicate with the deceased” during a Buddhist ritual to mourn the victims of the 2012 Lamma ferry crash has been fined HK$5,000 (US$643) for breaking Covid-19 regulations. An Eastern Court magistrate on Wednesday found that Lui Yuk-lin lacked justification for her defiant act on National Day last year, saying it was illogical and unreasonable to exempt people claiming to be performing a religious act in public from wearing a mask... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3143811/court-fines-hong-kong-woman-who-took-mask-communicate https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3143811/court-fines-hong-kong-woman-who-took-mask-communicate Wed, 04 Aug 2021 10:54:31 +0000 The Coroner’s Court has told the families of victims it will not investigate the 2012 Lamma ferry crash, Hong Kong’s worst maritime accident in decades. Relatives of the victims of the tragedy, in which 39 people died after a collision between two vessels, were notified by the court on Saturday that it would not open an inquest, said Democratic Party lawmaker James To Kun-sun, who has been assisting the families. “It was like a bolt from the blue for the family members after they had learned the... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3110839/hong-kong-coroners-court-will-not-investigate-lamma https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3110839/hong-kong-coroners-court-will-not-investigate-lamma Sat, 21 Nov 2020 15:43:05 +0000 The Department of Justice will no longer initiate prosecutions over the fatal 2012 National Day ferry crash off Hong Kong’s Lamma Island, the city’s acting transport minister has confirmed. But a lawmaker who has been assisting the families of the deceased in the accident has proposed new avenues for police to consider, urging authorities to continue their investigation. Thirty-nine people died when the passenger ferry Sea Smooth rammed into a HK Electric Company vessel, the Lamma IV, on October... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/society/article/3108501/hong-kong-done-initiating-prosecutions-over-lamma-ferry https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/society/article/3108501/hong-kong-done-initiating-prosecutions-over-lamma-ferry Wed, 04 Nov 2020 15:28:21 +0000 Families of some of the 39 people killed in a ferry collision on National Day eight years ago in Hong Kong have accused the government of denying them justice and police of dragging their heels over an investigation into the disaster. With an inquiry by the force ongoing, inquest proceedings cannot begin or death certificates issued. In an open letter released on Wednesday, the relatives of 17 victims said the government had yet to fulfil its promise to release a full internal report into the... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3103855/families-victims-hong-kong-ferry-disaster-still https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3103855/families-victims-hong-kong-ferry-disaster-still Thu, 01 Oct 2020 11:10:35 +0000 A senior Hong Kong marine official who ordered staff to ignore a life jacket law before the deadly 2012 Lamma ferry disaster has failed to clear his name but won a shorter sentence, which resulted in his immediate release on Friday. So Ping-chi, 61, was jailed for 16 months in June 2016 for misconduct in public office. A District Court judge at the time found the former assistant director of the Marine Department had seriously misconducted himself by wilfully instructing subordinates not to... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/2175866/hong-kong-marine-official-found-have-ignored-life https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/2175866/hong-kong-marine-official-found-have-ignored-life Fri, 30 Nov 2018 11:54:07 +0000 Secretary for Transport and Housing Anthony Cheung Bing-leung said on Saturday that it was not yet time for a full disclosure of an internal probe into the Lamma ferry disaster that claimed 39 lives on National Day four years ago. But returning lawmaker James To Kun-sun, who has been assisting families of the victims, was determined to pressure the government into conducting ­another closed-door session for a reading of the document. Hong Kong High Court judge calls for skippers of Lamma ferry... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/2024310/four-years-still-no-disclosure-hong-kong-minister-says-not https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/2024310/four-years-still-no-disclosure-hong-kong-minister-says-not Sat, 01 Oct 2016 11:00:45 +0000 Two skippers involved in the 2012 Lamma ferry collision, which claimed 39 lives, should be disqualified from taking the helm, the latest official inquiry into the incident has found. In a report released on Wednesday, retired High Court judge John Saunders, who led the investigation into the fitness and conduct of Chow Chi-wai and Lai Sai-ming, concluded that both Local Certificates of Competency (LCC) had to be cancelled. “[The collision] is so clearly a case of incompetence and negligence,”... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/2011913/hong-kong-high-court-judge-calls-skippers-lamma-ferry https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/2011913/hong-kong-high-court-judge-calls-skippers-lamma-ferry Wed, 31 Aug 2016 16:16:01 +0000 The Marine Department has updated vessel-tracking technology to improve safety in the harbour four years after the Lamma ferry disaster in a move which experts have decried as too little too late. The recent reform work made to the department’s vessel traffic system announced on Thursday widens the scope of its coverage to 10,000 marine targets, meaning ferries the size of the one that sank on National Day in 2012 can now come under their radars, according to a consultant. With thirteen radars... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/1992933/new-radar-technology-boost-hong-kong-boat-safety https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/1992933/new-radar-technology-boost-hong-kong-boat-safety Thu, 21 Jul 2016 13:42:30 +0000 Hong Kong’s top court has rejected a skipper’s application to recover part of the legal costs he incurred during his prosecution over the Lamma ferry disaster in 2012. Chow Chi-wai, 59, was cleared of manslaughter for his role in the disaster, in which 39 people died. Monday’s ruling upheld the lower Court of First Instance’s decision to refuse Chow, who was coxswain of Hongkong Electric’s Lamma IV, any costs incurred in his defence during the 60-day High Court jury trial from December 2014 to... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1985255/skipper-cleared-manslaughter-over-hong-kong-ferry-disaster https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1985255/skipper-cleared-manslaughter-over-hong-kong-ferry-disaster Mon, 04 Jul 2016 11:45:22 +0000 Pressure is mounting for the Hong Kong government to scale down its celebrations on Friday for the 19th anniversary of the city’s handover, after a pro-establishment lawmaker urged officials to consider residents’ feelings in the aftermath of a deadly fire that killed two firemen. Since 1997, local authorities have annually organised on July 1 a flag-raising ceremony at Golden Bauhinia Square in Wan Chai and a reception at the nearby Convention and Exhibition Centre to celebrate the former... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1982213/tone-down-july-1-celebrations-hong-kong-lawmakers-urge-after https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1982213/tone-down-july-1-celebrations-hong-kong-lawmakers-urge-after Mon, 27 Jun 2016 10:01:24 +0000 A senior official who ordered ­Marine Department staff to ignore a law on the number of life jackets that vessels must carry in the months and years prior to the deadly 2012 Lamma ferry disaster has been jailed for 16 months. The punishment meted out to So Ping-chi for misconduct in public office is thought to be one of the few times a city civil servant has been given a custodial sentence for failing to carry out their duties while in the job. The 59-year-old principal surveyor of ships – who... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1978411/hong-kong-marine-official-who-flouted-life-jacket-rules https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1978411/hong-kong-marine-official-who-flouted-life-jacket-rules Tue, 21 Jun 2016 04:48:59 +0000 The families of several victims in the 2012 Lamma ferry collision believe the disaster could have been prevented if marine officials had conducted proper follow-up work on their marine accident investigations in the decade leading up to it – a problem laid bare in a damning report by the Ombudsman last week. Democratic Party lawmaker James To Kun-sun, who has been helping the families, said an internal government probe and further criminal investigation were necessary. He is to meet with... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/1977428/decade-malaise-contributed-deaths-39-people-lamma https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/1977428/decade-malaise-contributed-deaths-39-people-lamma Mon, 20 Jun 2016 00:32:11 +0000 A senior Marine Department official was convicted by a court on Tuesday for instructing his subordinates to flout rules on the number of children’s life jackets boats are required to carry in Hong Kong. So Ping-chi, an assistant director at the department, also failed to rescind his instructions to ignore the rules, which came to light following the Lamma ferry collision that killed 39 people in 2012. The District Court ruled it was “deliberate, not inadvertent” that So, 59, general manager of... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1968039/guilty-marine-inspector-deliberately-told-workers-ignore https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1968039/guilty-marine-inspector-deliberately-told-workers-ignore Tue, 07 Jun 2016 05:25:26 +0000 A bereaved family that lost two children in the 2012 Lamma ferry collision has settled two of its four compensation claims with the owner of one of the boats, the High Court heard on Friday. Kwok Yin-tang and his wife Wong Yee-yi, who both survived the disaster that claimed 39 lives, reached an unspecified settlement with Hongkong Electric in respect of their personal injury claims. But future loss claims relating to their daughter Laura Kwok Leung-ying, 4, and son Matthew Kwok Man-hei, 3, who... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1963782/lamma-ferry-crash-survivors-reach-partial-settlement-hong https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1963782/lamma-ferry-crash-survivors-reach-partial-settlement-hong Fri, 03 Jun 2016 08:38:19 +0000 A senior Marine Department official accused of failing to ensure there were enough life jackets on vessels inspected by his team will hear the verdict in his misconduct case next month. So Ping-chi, an assistant director at the department, denies one count of misconduct in public office for allegedly instructing his subordinates not to enforce a provision on children’s life jackets when he was a principal surveyor of ships from April 2007 to March 2013. He is also accused of failing to rescind... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1940716/verdict-next-month-hong-kong-official-accused-failing https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1940716/verdict-next-month-hong-kong-official-accused-failing Tue, 03 May 2016 11:26:41 +0000 A senior Marine Department official’s failure to ensure there were enough life jackets on vessels inspected by his team amounted to serious misconduct, the District Court heard on Tuesday. The court formally began hearing the case of So Ping-chi, an assistant director at the department, after it ruled that an internal probe into the official following the Lamma ferry disaster of 2012 would not be considered as evidence against him in the current misconduct trial. I would have kept quiet if I’d... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1937214/hong-kong-officials-failure-implement-life-jacket-law https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1937214/hong-kong-officials-failure-implement-life-jacket-law Tue, 19 Apr 2016 14:08:40 +0000 An internal probe into a senior Marine Department official would not be considered as evidence against him in the misconduct trial following from the Lamma ferry disaster of 2012, a court ruled on Monday. So Ping-chi, an assistant director at the department, argued last week that he would not have said what he said to investigators had he known it would used against him in a criminal court. The District Court heard that So allegedly told his staff not to enforce a new law that ensured the... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1936934/details-probe-hong-kong-marine-official-will-not-be-allowed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1936934/details-probe-hong-kong-marine-official-will-not-be-allowed Mon, 18 Apr 2016 11:24:40 +0000 A senior official linked to the 2012 Lamma ferry collision that cost 39 lives was “deceived” into giving answers in an internal probe, the District Court heard on Friday. Marine Department assistant director So Ping-chi, who is charged with one count of misconduct in public office, was asked after the disaster to fill in a questionnaire and attend an interview conducted by the Transport and Housing Bureau, the supervising authority overseeing the city’s transportation and housing sectors. So,... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1936266/hong-kong-official-deceived-lamma-ferry-disaster-probe https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1936266/hong-kong-official-deceived-lamma-ferry-disaster-probe Fri, 15 Apr 2016 14:31:17 +0000 A senior official linked to the 2012 Lamma ferry collision that cost 39 lives told the District Court on Thursday he did not expect answers he gave in an internal probe would be used against him in a criminal case. Marine Department assistant director So Ping-chi, who is charged with one count of misconduct in public office, said he would have remained silent if he had known he was a target of an investigation. So allegedly told subordinates they were not required to enforce a new law ensuring... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1936021/i-would-have-kept-quiet-if-id-known-probe-says-hong-kong https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1936021/i-would-have-kept-quiet-if-id-known-probe-says-hong-kong Fri, 15 Apr 2016 00:00:00 +0000 A retired ship inspector has been sentenced to 15 months in jail for making a false statement at an inquiry into the Lamma ferry disaster, which killed 39 people. Despite inspector Wong Kam-ching’s exemplary character and dedication to public service, District Court judge Timothy Casewell said Wong committed was a serious offence. “It is [serious] in this case because it involved an investigation into the cause of the collision,” he said. On October 1, 2012, Hongkong Electric’sLamma IV, which... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1916659/lamma-ferry-disaster-retired-hong-kong-ship-inspector https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1916659/lamma-ferry-disaster-retired-hong-kong-ship-inspector Thu, 25 Feb 2016 09:00:15 +0000 A retired senior ship inspector accused of giving a false statement to an inquiry into the Lamma ferry disaster has been found guilty of perjury. Inspector Wong Kam-ching, 61, told the inquiry in 2013 that he was satisfied with the number of children’s life vests on Lamma IV when he inspected the boat for the Marine Department six months before the tragedy. But there had not been any children’s life vests on board from the day it was bought until the disaster, the District Court had heard... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1908080/lamma-ferry-disaster-ship-inspector-found-guilty-perjury https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1908080/lamma-ferry-disaster-ship-inspector-found-guilty-perjury Mon, 01 Feb 2016 05:19:42 +0000 A retired senior ship inspector from the Marine Department accused of giving a false statement to the Lamma disaster inquiry showed a court a video purportedly involving a seaman rigging an inspection yesterday. The practice was known “prop boat”, Wong Kam-ching’s barrister John Dunn told an earlier hearing at the District Court, suggesting it involved an agent lending ship parts temporarily to satisfy authorities. The videoappeared to show a person aboard a fishing boat removing a navigation... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1901202/ex-marine-department-man-accused-perjury-lamma-disaster https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1901202/ex-marine-department-man-accused-perjury-lamma-disaster Thu, 14 Jan 2016 12:15:30 +0000 A retired senior ship inspector accused of giving a false statement at an inquiry into a fatal ferry collision off Lamma Island in 2012 was shown children’s life vests borrowed specifically for the purpose of passing an inspection, his lawyer told a court today. Barrister John Dunn told the District Court that his client Wong Kam-ching, then an inspector for the Marine Department, was allegedly shown children’s life vests when he inspected the Lamma IV on May 8 in 2012. Lamma IV collided with... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1899116/hong-kong-ferry-inspector-saw-borrowed-life-vests-werent https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1899116/hong-kong-ferry-inspector-saw-borrowed-life-vests-werent Fri, 08 Jan 2016 09:15:15 +0000 A retired senior ship inspector responsible for checking life jackets aboard the Lamma IV, which sank in a fatal 2012 crash, pleaded not guilty to the accusation that he falsely claimed to have seen children’s life vests aboard the ship. Wong Kam-ching, who retired from the Marine Department, appeared in District Court in Wan Chai before district judge Timothy Harry Casewell on Wednesday. The trial was to centre on a charge of perjury accusing Wong of delivering a false statement on February 18,... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1898356/inspector-ill-fated-hong-kong-ferry-pleads-not-guilty https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1898356/inspector-ill-fated-hong-kong-ferry-pleads-not-guilty Wed, 06 Jan 2016 07:29:07 +0000 Two Court of Appeal judges have blocked a bid to reduce the sentence handed to the captain who caused 39 deaths in the Lamma ferry tragedy in 2012, saying the court had a duty to remind those in charge of vehicles of their responsibilities to their passengers. Mr Justice Andrew Macrae and Mr Justice Ian McWalters upheld the decision of a judge in an earlier trial to jail Lai Sai-ming for eight years. Lai, 56, the captain of Hong Kong and Kowloon Ferry’s Sea Smooth, had asked the court to reduce... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1878118/captain-hong-kongs-lamma-ferry-tragedy-has-appeal-rejected https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1878118/captain-hong-kongs-lamma-ferry-tragedy-has-appeal-rejected Thu, 12 Nov 2015 04:00:00 +0000 The jailed captain of Hong Kong and Kowloon Ferry's Sea Smooth, Lai Sai-ming, should be jailed for 18 months instead of eight years, his lawyer told an appeal hearing yesterday. Barrister Chyvette Ip argued in the Court of Appeal that the eight-year sentence failed to take into account the responsibility of others in causing 39 deaths in the Lamma Ferry tragedy three years ago. Lai, 56, was convicted in February by a majority verdict of 39 counts of manslaughter, and unanimously, of endangering... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1875262/sea-captain-jailed-over-39-deaths-lamma-ferry-disaster https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/law-crime/article/1875262/sea-captain-jailed-over-39-deaths-lamma-ferry-disaster Tue, 03 Nov 2015 07:45:45 +0000