More blamed for ferry disaster
2006-04-09 22:24
Cairo - An investigation into what caused
an Egyptian ferry to sink in the Red Sea with the loss of more
than 1 000 lives in February widened to include the firm which
owned the boat, Egypt's MENA news agency said on Sunday.
The government has so far laid blame for the disaster on the
captain, who it says did not take any important safety measures.
The boat belonged to a Cairo-based company owned by Mamdouh
Ismail, a member of the upper house of parliament.
The head of a committee investigating the disaster said
there was negligence by both the captain and the company which
owned the Al Salam 98, MENA said.
The investigation is still
underway.
"There were failings by the captain and the company in
managing the situation," MENA quoted investigator Mohammed Shama
as saying.
Transport minister Mohamed Mansour also said "there is
evidence indicating negligence by the captain, the crew of the
ferry and the operating company", MENA reported.
Tons of water used in the crew's effort to put out a fire
in the ferry's garage caused the boat to list, Mansour said.
Some of the 387 people who survived said the ferry, heading
to Egypt from Saudi Arabia, had sailed at a list for about two
hours before capsizing and sinking quickly.
The fire broke out
shortly after the boat left Saudi Arabia, they said.