Hong Kong court orders coroner’s inquest into 2012 Lamma ferry crash that killed 39 people, overturning earlier ruling

Tragedy raises questions over Marine Department’s potential failure in ensuring safety protocols were followed by shipbuilders, chief judge Jeremy Poon says

‘It’s the first time in so many years that I’m able to smile again in front of the cameras,’ Alice Leung, who lost her brother in crash, says

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Thirty-nine people, including eight children, died in the city’s worst maritime disaster since 1971. Photo: Sam Tsang

Published: 1:27pm, 26 Jul 2023Updated: 10:15pm, 26 Jul 2023

Hong Kong’s High Court has ordered a coroner’s inquest into one of the city’s worst maritime disasters after it ruled it was in the public interest to subject authorities to scrutiny in a bid to prevent similar deaths in the future.

The Court of Appeal on Wednesday overturned a judge’s earlier ruling that an inquiry into the 39 deaths caused by a collision between two ferries in the waters off Lamma Island on October 1, 2012, was not needed.

Chief Judge of the High Court Jeremy Poon Shiu-chor said the tragedy had raised questions that required further investigation at a public hearing, including whether the Marine Department had failed to ensure safety regulations were followed by the shipyard involved.

Alice Leung and Philip Chiu, relatives of two of the victims, stand outside the High Court after learning about Wednesday’s ruling. Photo: Brian Wong

“This already makes a very strong case for public examination of [department officers responsible for ensuring safety], who may or may not be the 17 officers identified in the [government’s] internal investigation,” Poon said in reference to a probe carried out by authorities in 2014.

The verdict was the first time the Court of Appeal has overruled a decision against holding an inquest.

Poon said the case called for a public examination to “expose any further systemic deficiency” in the department not yet discovered by a separate government-appointed inquiry into the tragedy.

An open court hearing might also help enhance accountability and public confidence in the department’s governance, he added.