Maritime Director says SKN should learn from Haitian tragedy

By Cherisse M. Sutton/Jeffers
Reporter SKNVibes.com

(Port-au-Prince, Haiti):  Mc Clean Hobson, Director of Maritime Affairs has said that St. Kitts and Nevis should learn from the recent boating tragedy that occurred in the waters off Haiti when a ferry capsized with an unknown number of passengers.

Reports on the incident indicate that the bodies of several adults and children were recovered; however officials remain unclear as to how many persons may still be missing. The vessel capsized off the Haitian coast as it transported persons from the south side of Haiti to the capital.

Although unconfirmed information puts the total number of passengers onboard at the time of the tragedy to be over one hundred, only a fraction of the victims have been found as officials continue their search.

According to one source there are no official records for maritime transport in that country. ~~Adz:Right~~

A few months back SKNVibes.com published an article entitled ‘No I.D. No ferry ticket’ which spoke to the department of Maritime Affairs St. Kitts implementing the presentation of photo ID when purchasing ferry tickets in the federation. The rule was met with opposition from some boat operators/owners and also from persons who use the ferry.

According to Hobson, situations such as the one experienced in Haiti are what the Department is trying to prevent in St. Kitts and Nevis.

“In the instance that something like this should take place, Maritime Affairs and police officials can know how many were involved and the identity of each person onboard. It would be a matter of record and not assumption,” he said.

Upon speaking with Hobson today May 21st, he  informed SKNVibes.com that they now have a comprehensive plan to implement the ‘photo ID rule’ for travel between St. Kitts and Nevis and that they are seeking to develop and implement an entirely computerized system for record keeping and ticket purchasing.