Huong Pagoda boat trip safety fears

Boat operators have been loading as many as 40 people on small boats as visitors flocked to Huong Pagoda Festival in Hanoi during the weekend.

Boat operators have been loading as many as 40 people on small boats as visitors flocked to Huong Pagoda Festival in Hanoi during the weekend.

  

Operators have been loading as many as 40 people on small boats

Even though boat operators have been trained on waterway traffic law and are asked to sign a commitment to not overload their vessels and not charge customers higher prices, the management is still lax as no agency manages the number of visitors on each boat and the disputes over customers among the operators.

According to Huong Son communal authorities, the streams are 1.5 to 1.9 metres deep and the boats have the capacity to carry 6 to 12 people. However, in reality, the boat operators carried as much as 40 people. Most boats only have three life jackets while some don't even have any.

  

No agency manages the number of visitors on each boat

Huong Son communal authorities said several boats capsized a few years ago but no one was hurt. The lifeguards monitor the scene nearby. Moreover, it's also easy for boat operators to help each other in case of emergency.

Nguyen Chi Thanh, head of the Huong Son Complex Management Board, admitted that the situation was more chaotic than usual and it was difficult to manage because of limited infrastructure and the high number of visitors on February 24.

The organising board of Huong Pagoda Festival said they had dealt with three overloading cases and hadn't discovered new cases.

Huong Pagoda received over 170,000 visitors since Tet Holiday and 306,000 visitors since early 2018, an increase of 15% compared to the same period last year.