Another Boating Tragedy
The death of five people on a Dept of Immigration boat in the Torres Strait was a "tragedy waiting to happen", an investigation found on 5th May 2006.
A damming report into the sinking of the Malu Sara in the Torres Strait on October 15 last year confirmed bad boat design, inadequate safety equipment and a captain who knew little about how to operate the boat's outboard motors and satellite phone all contributed to the capsizing.
The Aust. Transport Safety Bureau report said that of the five people onboard
the Malu Sara two were departmental officials and three were civilians.
"It was apparently not an unusual event to carry civilians on board DIMIA vessels subject to approval. In this case approval sought but not given apparently."
Coast Guard has developed a community education program in an attempt to reduce the number of small craft which go missing each, requiring large scale searches.
The image to the right, is a safety guide handed to Islanders.