Passengers caused sinking of boat in Inhambane Bay – Maxixe Court rules

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Passengers caused sinking of boat in Inhambane Bay – Maxixe Court rules

11:35 CAT | 04 Jul 2017

Notícias

The First Section of the Maxixe Judicial Court concluded on Friday that the sinking of a boat at a pier in September last year, which resulted in the death of four people and the loss of passengers’ belongings, was caused by passengers’ own disrespect for safety standards.

The court therefore decided to acquit the three seamen on trial, finding that that the accident had happened when all the passengers tried to leave the boat en masse while it was still in its mooring approach.

According to the judgment given by Judge Alberto Menete, the passengers’ behaviour capsized and sank the boat.

Relatives of the victims and survivors expressed disappointment with the court’s decision, saying the accident was caused by crew negligence and overcrowding, and that the vessel was operating despite mechanical deficiencies.

The case drew many people to the Maxixe City Judicial Court, where relatives of the four victims said the court did not consider the swell in Inhambane bay that afternoon, which had hampered navigability.

Also Read: Four dead, 20 missing after boat capsizes off Inhambane Bay

This thesis however failed to impress the court, the three members of the “Mana Isabel” crew, José Inácio, Armando Nhanala and Zacarias Alberto, stating that on the day of the accident no warning of bad weather was issued by any official entity, which was why all boats in the area were sailing normally.

The judge said that the relatives of the victims and the survivors were free to file an appeal or, failing that, to file civil suit for compensation for moral and material damages.

Source: Notícias