QUEEN MARY 2

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Ferry allided with buoy

The "Kukuoka II" with 509 people on board allided with a buoy which marks shallows southwest of Akashi, Honshu, on March 18, 2018, at 7.30 p.m. The buoy is 10,6 metres tall and weighs eight tonnes. The ferry was en route from Osaka, where she had sailed at 5 p.m., to Kitakyushu , ETA March 19, 5.30 a.m. The accident happened when an ill person was being taken from the ferry onto a patrol boat at around 7.35 p.m. near Akashi Strait between Akashi and Awaji Island in Hyogo. The ferry had not dropped its anchor. After the accident the ferry was moored near the buoy with the propeller possibly being entangled in the buoy’s chain and damaged by the chain. Divers have been in the sea to check the condition of the ferry in the morning of March 19 in order to decide whether she could sail on its own or needed to be towed. The government's transport accident investigation panel has sent three officers to look into the case. The ferry returned to Osaka on March 19. Reports with photo and video: https://www.bangkokpost.com/news/world/1431150/hundreds-stranded-on-ferry-in-western-japan-since-sunday https://japantoday.com/category/national/500-people-stranded-aboard-ferry-in-western-japan-since-sunday