Freak weather blamed for Yangtze River ship disaster
An inquiry into the Yangtze River ship disaster which claimed the lives of hundreds of passengers has found freak weather was mostly to blame.
The Eastern Star ship sailing from Nanjing to Chongqing capsized in June, killing 442.
An investigation by the Chinese government called it ‘an extraordinarily serious disaster’.
The report said winds escalated rapidly alongside heavy rainfall, causing the ship to sink in just a minute.
The winds were twice as strong as the ship could handle but crew members were also culpable.
The ship’s captain and officer in charge, who perished in the incident, failed to respond effectively and the report recommended the captain’s licence be revoked.
He could also face criminal charges.
In addition it asked that seven people from the shipping company and 36 local government officials should face punishments for administrative failures.
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
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