Last 15th January 2024 major marine safety event, titled “United for Marine Safety” ended with many of Phuket’s leading boar tour operators, government and safety officials, signing a Memorandum of Understanding, and committing to a range of new safety measures.
Following the death of a 5-year-old Russian child on a boat tour at Koh Maithon on December 31, an urgent response was given to the event, which was mostly organized by 5 Star Marine (Shaun Stenning, CEO) and backed by some of the biggest boat tour firms on the island.
However, the main organizer and CEO of 5 Star Marine, Shaun Stenning, claims that the existing quo needs to be changed quickly in reaction to years' worth of fatalities, collisions, and "near misses" in the sector.
“As a parent I am hoping that tonight’s commitment between the industry and island officials will save at least one life… then all my efforts have been worth it. The recent incident at Koh Maithon was a wake-up call for the entire industry to unite, introduce new safety procedures and commit to enforcing existing rules.” Shaun Stenning said
The MOU included the following new guidelines which have been agreed to by Phuket’s tour boat industry leaders…
The above goals will be accomplished by undertaking the following activities:
Drug Examination
Before starting employment, EVERY employee of a Marine Industry Company is required to submit to a drug test. Prior to commencing work at an organization, an individual is required to provide a negative test result.
Every fifteen days, ALL boat crew members, including captains, engineers, deck hands, and guides, will be subject to random drug testing conducted by the undersigned firm.
Life Jackets
EVERY boat needs to have enough life jackets that meet specified standards.
Instruction
Once a year, ALL boat crew, guide crew, and engineering staff are required to take a First Aid Training course.
On board the ships transporting people to sea, captains, engineers, and boat crew are required to complete training and get a certificate of competency relevant to their roles. The main topic of instruction will be navigational safety, which includes using and managing boats and other relevant equipment. The Phuket Provincial Skill Development Office is going to create and deliver the training.
Come to the rescue
As part of future planning, a plan will be in place for the rapid transportation of victims in locations where events happen regularly using jet ski boats.
There were about 300 guests at the White House in Boat Lagoon for the occasion, which included Sophon Suwannarat, the governor of Phuket.