Boat Insurance News: School children drown as Sierra Leone ferry sinks
Posted on September 14th 2009
After the SuperFerry-9 started to drift of the coast of the Philippines, the coast guard and other nearby ships were immediately on hand to help rescue survivors after the Captain had issued a mayday call.
The ferry in Sierra Leone was not so lucky as over 150 people entered the sea with no lifejackets to aid their survival. A spokesman from the naval rescue mission lamented that the country's maritime law had been violated when owners of the ferry had disregarded the need to carry enough life jackets for all passengers.
Similar to the SuperFerry-9 collapse, the sea-faring community has banded together in an attempt to find any more survivors of the capsized vessel, which was reported missing near the coastal village of Shenge near Plantain Island on route to the town of Tombo in the Freetown region.
Although 36 people have been found and saved, ten bodies have also been recovered and fishermen expressed their concern that the possibility of finding any more survivors was slim. The village of Shenge has entered mourning as many relatives were lost on the ferry.
This tragedy has been further worsened by revelations that the ferry was carrying mainly school children on their return from the school holidays.
Insure My Boat offers boat insurance to vessel owners across the helping to recover the shipwreck of your boat.
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