It is Twenty Years since the Zeebruge disaster

international | anti-capitalism | opinion/analysis

Tuesday March 06, 2007 21:03

by Twenty Years Anniversary

Twenty years since the ferry disaster

The Guardian are covering the issue in their 'Transport' section.
For anyone nt old enough, the ferry went down outside of Zeebruge
and many lives were lost. The doors on the huge ferry jammed and
it took on tons of water.

Herald of Free enterprise

Many died.
The company who ran it just changed the head-rests.
We travelled the same route precisely twelve months after the disaster and on the same
type of ferry- en route to party in Amsterdam.

One of the kids was ill and when we cleaned up, we had to remove the white
cotton covers from the head rests. Beneath the covers was the logo of the company
responsible for the disaster- it had been printed on the seat.

The tourists were needless to say upset.
The big multi who used that route had nodded to the grief of the survivors
by covering the name but not changing anything on their fleet of ships
including the route.

We travelled with heavy hearts through the port of Zeebruge.

RIP.

Global Capitalism really does not care for the feelings of people.
Weekend papers also report that shipping is as environmentally unfriendly
as travelling by plane.

which

save preference

Comments (3 of 3)

The doors did not jam

by dave

Fri Mar 09, 2007 19:23

The crewman who with the duty of operating the doors had gone to sleep in his cabin and when departure was announced over the PA system he was not available. The other crew who were loading the vehicles in the hold went up deck assuming the doors had been closed. Their supervisor whose responsibility it was to make sure that the doors were closed had neglected to do so and had gone to inform the bridge that the captain could proceed from port. The captain had no sensor light nor a CCTV system in the bridge to inform him otherwise.
The ship sailed with its bow doors open and the breaking waves sloshed into the open hold. Flooding caused the vessel to list and the cargo of passengers' vehicles to shift within the hold. The ferry rolled over on its side and sank. Only a sandbar prevented the vessel from completely capsizing.
The company, crewmen, supervisor and captain were all to blame.

International rules

by Solas 90

Wed Mar 07, 2007 14:07

http://www.safety-at-sea.co.uk/html/Service4.htm

The guidelines were issued in recent times- HOWEVER-
ferry companies do have until 2010 to implement.

There have been many disasters in Indonesia involving shipping.

Newscientist magazine had predicted a disaster about a year before Zeebrugge

by Terence

Wed Mar 07, 2007 13:56

I recall reading an article in NewScientist magazine at least 6 months or possibly a year before the Zeebrugge car ferry disaster. The article was about the instability of these ships and how top heavy they were and indicated that they could easily roll over. It was a clear as indication as any that this was an accident waiting to happen.

In the event of course as the ferry was leaving port and the back door was still open a wave of water entered the back of the boat and was able to tip it over. The analogy that has often been used is to imagine holding a large tray with an inch or so of water in it and trying to balance it. As anyone who has ever carried a tray will know even a slightly imbalance or tilt will cause the water to slosh over to one side and exert a large turning force on the tray which is very hard to control.

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It is Twenty Years since the Zeebruge disaster

Comments (3 of 3)