The launch of the enquiry, according to DoT national spokesman, Mr Colleen Msibi in a statement on Wednesday, follow a submission of a draft preliminary enquiry report by the South African Maritime Safety Authority (SAMSA) to Transport Minister, Ms Barbara Creecy, and deputy Minister of Transport, Mr Mkhuleko Hlengwa this past weekend.
The SAMSA draft report is scheduled to be finalised and released before the end of 2024, said Mr Msibi.
Mr Msibi said: “The Minister of Transport, Ms. Barbara Creecy and the Deputy Minister, Mr Mkhuleko Hlengwa have on Sunday the 10th of November 2024 received a notification from the South African Maritime Authority (SAMSA) indicating that a draft report regarding the tragic sinking of the Fishing Vessel Lepanto, has been completed. The tragic accident happened on 17 May 2024, where eleven lives perished at sea.
“The Minister and Deputy Minister have requested (the) SAMSA board to urgently finalize the report with its legal team. They have also instructed the Department to begin a process of establishing a Marine Court of Enquiry to further pursue an investigation and bring the report to finality.
“Creecy and Hlengwa have expressed their strong desire to release the final preliminary report before the end of the year,” said Mr Msibi.
The sinking in May 2024 of the 38,6-meters long, 63 years old FV Lepanto, resulting in the tragic loss of lives of 11 crew believed to have remained trapped onboard – the vessel reportedly sank rapidly, within about five (5) minutes after a sudden heavy listing – was one of a handful of sea incidents involving commercial fishing vessels during the year and from which approximately 70 crew members in total were successfully rescued and evacuated.
The incidents included a sister commercial vessel to the FV Lepanto, the FV Armana which reportedly had been the first responder to issue a mayday call, as well as rescue and evacuate the nine (9) surviving crew members of the FV Lepanto on 17 May 2024.
Incidentally, five months later, the FV Armana reportedly also caught fire and sank in October 2024 while out at sea in a location some 60 nautical miles offshore from Gansbaai on the Atlantic Ocean. All its 20 crew members on board were successfully rescued and evacuated back to Cape Town.
The two sister commercial fishing vessels’ incidents were interspersed by two others, the grounding of the FV Elke M in January, near St Francis Bay on the Eastern Cape coast (Indian Ocean), and the sinking of the FV Oceana Amethyst approximately 20 nautical miles west north- west of Slangkoppunt on the Altantic Ocean in the Western Cape.
All crew on board both vessels (FV Elke M = 22 and FV Oceana Amethyst = 20) were successfully rescued and evacuated.
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