Ferry runs aground north of Pulau Tekong

Mustafa Shafawi Channel NewsAsia 7 Jun 11;

SINGAPORE: A ferry ran aground north of Pulau Tekong Tuesday morning after experiencing engine trouble.
The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) said it was informed at 11.25 am Tuesday that the Belize-registered passenger ferry, FB Falcon Princess, had beached north of Pulau Tekong about 1.8 km west-southwest of Johor's Tanjung Belungkor Ferry Terminal.

The incident occurred within the Singapore port limit.

The passenger ferry was on a scheduled trip from Changi Ferry Terminal to Tanjung Belungkor Ferry Terminal.

At the time of the incident, there were 24 passengers and 11 crew onboard.

MPA said all passengers were safely transferred to Tanjung Belungkor Ferry Terminal using another boat.

There was no report of any injury or pollution.

Vessel traffic remains unaffected.

MPA said it has issued navigational broadcasts to inform ships in the vicinity of the incident and to keep clear.

MPA said it is investigating the incident.

- CNA/cc

Passenger ferry beached at Pulau Tekong
AsiaOne 7 Jun 11;

SINGAPORE - Engine problem forced a Belize-registered passenger ferry to stop at Pulau Tekong this morning.

The ferry was on a scheduled trip from Changi Ferry Terminal to Tanjung Belungkor Ferry Terminal in Johor, Malaysia.

The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) in a statement said that the FB Falcon Princess beached north of Pulau Tekong, about 1.8 km west-southwest of Tanjung Belungkor Ferry Terminal.

The incident occurred within the Singapore port limit, MPA said.

There were 24 passengers on board. There were also 11 crew members working on the vessel.

All passengers have been safely transferred to Tanjung Belungkor Ferry Terminal, said MPA. There was no report of any injury or pollution. The incident did not disrupt naval traffic in the area.

MPA is investigating the incident.

Located northeast of Singapore, Pulau Tekong is the second largest of the Republic's outlying islands and is east of Pulau Ubin.

Ferry runs aground north of Pulau Tekong
Mustafa Shafawi Channel NewsAsia 7 Jun 11;

SINGAPORE: A ferry ran aground north of Pulau Tekong Tuesday morning after experiencing engine trouble.

The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) said it was informed at 11.25 am Tuesday that the Belize-registered passenger ferry, FB Falcon Princess, had beached north of Pulau Tekong about 1.8 km west-southwest of Johor's Tanjung Belungkor Ferry Terminal.

The incident occurred within the Singapore port limit.

The passenger ferry was on a scheduled trip from Changi Ferry Terminal to Tanjung Belungkor Ferry Terminal.

At the time of the incident, there were 24 passengers and 11 crew onboard.

MPA said all passengers were safely transferred to Tanjung Belungkor Ferry Terminal using another boat.

There was no report of any injury or pollution.

Vessel traffic remains unaffected.

MPA said it has issued navigational broadcasts to inform ships in the vicinity of the incident and to keep clear.

MPA said it is investigating the incident.

- CNA/cc

Johor-bound ferry runs into trouble
Straits Times 8 Jun 11;

A FERRY from Changi Point had almost reached its Malaysian destination when it developed engine trouble after hitting a half-submerged metal pole.

The 24 passengers had to be transferred to other vessels which answered a call for help from the FB Falcon Princess ferry yesterday.

It had left Changi Point Ferry Terminal at around 10am for Tanjung Belungkor in Johor. From there, holidaymakers take a taxi or coach to Desaru, about 30km away. Towards the end of the hour-long trip yesterday, the passengers - mostly Singaporeans - heard a loud scraping sound from the ferry's engine.

The 11-member crew called for help and nearby Malaysian boat operators responded. All 24 passengers and the crew boarded their boats which took them to their intended destination.

According to Mr Guo Li, whose Malaysian-registered vessel was among those which provided help, the Falcon Princess had hit a large metal pole or structure half-submerged in the water. This had damaged the engine and the bottom of the ferry, causing it to stall.

A 56-year-old passenger, who wanted to be known only as Madam Tan, said: 'We heard the sounds of the engine spluttering - it sounded like there was something jammed there, then the boat stopped.'

She added that though she felt nervous, others kept calm as they knew they were not far from the coast.

A Maritime and Port Authority spokesman said it was informed of the incident at around 11.30am yesterday.

There was no report of injury or pollution. It is investigating the incident, which took place in Singapore waters.

ELIZABETH SOH & DANSON CHEONG


Ferry Beached North Of Pulau Tekong, Says Singapore MFA
Bernama 7 Jun 11;

SINGAPORE, June 7 (Bernama) -- The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) was informed at 11.25 am that a Belize-registered passenger ferry, FB Falcon Princess, had an engine problem and beached north of Pulau Tekong.

The ferry was located at 1.8 km west-southwest of Tanjung Belungkor Ferry Terminal, Johor.

The incident occurred within the Singapore port limit, said the MPA in a statement.

The passenger ferry was on a scheduled trip from the Changi Ferry Terminal to Tanjung Belungkor Ferry Terminal.

At the time of the incident, there were 24 passengers and 11 crew onboard the vessel. All passengers were safely transferred to Tanjung Belungkor Ferry Terminal using other passenger craft. There was no report of any injury or pollution.

Vessel traffic remains unaffected. MPA has issued navigational broadcasts to inform ships in the vicinity of the incident and to keep clear.

MPA is investigating the incident.

-- BERNAMA


Ferry beached north of Pulau Tekong
liyana SingaporeScene Yahoo News 7 Jun 11;

The ferry was 1.8km away from Tanjung Belungkor Ferry Terminal. (Yahoo! file photo)

The ferry was 1.8km away from Tanjung Belungkor Ferry Terminal. (Yahoo! file photo)

An engine problem caused a ferry to beach north of Pulau Tekong on Tuesday morning.

The Belize-registered passenger ferry, FB Falcon Princess, was on a scheduled trip to Johor's Tanjung Belungkor Ferry Terminal from Changi Ferry Terminal when the incident happened.

The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) said in a statement that it was informed of the incident, which occurred within the Singapore port limit, at 11.25am.

In an email reply to Yahoo! Singapore, MPA said the the ferry captain chose to beach at Pulau Tekong as it was the nearest shallow water area at the time of the incident.

A boat from Tanjung Belungkor Ferry Terminal transported the 24 passengers and 11 crew onboard the ferry Tanjung Belungkor Ferry Terminal at noon.

There was no report of any injury or pollution, and vessel traffic was not affected, said MPA.

The MPA is investigating the incident.

Ferry Beached North Of Pulau Tekong
MPA Press Release 7 Jun 11;

At about 1125hrs on 7 June 2011 (Singapore time), the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) was informed that a Belize-registered passenger ferry, FB Falcon Princess, had an engine problem and beached north of Pulau Tekong about 1.8 km west-southwest of Tanjung Belungkor Ferry Terminal, Johor. The incident occurred within the Singapore port limit.

The passenger ferry was on a scheduled trip from Changi Ferry Terminal to Tanjung Belungkor Ferry Terminal. At the time of the incident, there were 24 passengers and 11 crew onboard the vessel. All passengers were safely transferred to Tanjung Belungkor Ferry Terminal using other passenger craft. There was no report of any injury or pollution.

Vessel traffic remains unaffected. MPA has issued navigational broadcasts to inform ships in the vicinity of the incident and to keep clear. MPA is investigating the incident.

End of Release.