Consider safety regulations

THE number of lives lost of sea will continue to increase because of the negligence of small boat owners, operators and passengers.
Time and again, authorities have been calling on boat owners, operators and passengers in maritime provinces to exercise responsibility and strictly follow sea safety measures.
One does not need to consult an encyclopaedia when it comes to exercising some form of responsibility and comply with sea safety measures. This includes avoiding travelling in bad weather and overloading.
There is also a requirement to carry extra fuel, life jackets and some form of communication device.
But we still have people travelling in overloaded dinghies carrying building materials, food items, bags of betel nut. To compound the problem, boat operators ignore simple safety regulations.
Boat operators must know their load limit which is supposed to be a monitoring mechanism for load capacity.
It seems many want to make quick money and ignore this limit. The load limit must be enforced by all concerned especially local authorities to ensure safety for operators and passengers.
The Morobe Provincial Disaster and Emergency Services must be commended for taking the initiative to enforce the load limit.
Most times, people along the coast don’t take heed of weather warnings and venture out during windy conditions thinking they are competent seafarers and know how to sail through it all.
It is those who live along the coast who want to pit their skills against Mother Nature and end up as statistics.
For some, years of practice and experience in sea travel puts them in good stead as it is the only means of travelling from one point to another.
They have watched their grand¬fathers and village elders do it so many times that it becomes a nec¬essary means of survival.
And we must warn that banana boats are no fun at all when the wind picks up. And the wind can pick up with little warning.
People die reasonably frequently in open-sea banana-boat crossings. You will need to exercise common sense before boarding one.
Don’t contemplate a trip in rough weather or if the boat is dangerously overloaded.
Remember that these boats usually do not carry life jackets or any kind of safety equipment.
The call adhering to weather conditions follows the recent boating accident in Port Moresby over the weekend where three people are still missing.
The fourth passenger managed to swim to an island after the boat capsized on Saturday in rough seas during a fishing trip.
The Government knows how much it costs to conduct searches and rescue operations when peo¬ple encounter mishaps at sea.
That why through the National Maritime Safety Authority has been calling on small boat owners and operations to practise sea safety rules especially during bad weather.
The NMSA must be commended also for conducting awareness along the coastal villagers through its Community Development Department.
But they can only do so much. The final call on venturing out to seas in any day rests entirely on the boat owners and operators.
One cause of dinghies capsizing at sea is when a bigger engine is mounted.
Dinghies should be in good condition to operate and most dinghies capsize because of overloading or engine problems.
The NMSA is also passing the responsibility to ensure betel nut trade is supervised and safe to the governments of the 15 maritime provinces.
These provinces must take full responsibility and ownership to ensure the Small Craft Act (SCA) 2011 is effectively implemented and administered to improve and promote sea safety for small boat owners, operators and passengers, including those transporting betel nut by sea.
This warning follows several boat incidents in Manus, Wewak and Madang recently because of betel nut trade.
Failure to comply can result in severe penalties under the Small Craft Act.
We note that recently a boat operator in Milne Bay was convicted of a serious SCA offence and was sentenced for five years imprisonment.
So there you have it. Boat owners, operators and passengers caught breaching this Act can expect the penalties applied accordingly.
The Government has done its part by formulating and enacting safety measures to protect lives. It is up to the people to follow them.
There just has been too many unnecessary loss of lives at sea. It needs to be stopped.