LAGOS State Government on Tuesday formally released new legal regimes as
new operational guidelines for commercial and private boat operators in the
state, saying all boats must have adequate safety accessories.
The Managing Director, Lagos State Waterways
Authority, Ms Abisola Kamson, who spoke at a stakeholders’ meeting, hinted that
the new laws were aimed at taking proactive safety measures to secure the lives
of passengers that usually lose their lives in any mishap on the high sea adding
that all commercial boat drivers must be certified, and able to present their
certificates during routine inspection.
“Commercial boats must be fitted with adequate
safety accessories including, but not limited to fire extinguishers, paddle,
life boats, shore-to-sea communication gadgets, pyrotechnics and hand flare,
functional key starter, horn and alarm system. The manifest on board must be
secured in a watertight corner”, Kamson said.
Speaking further, the Area Manager, National
Inland Waterways Authority, (NIWA) Muhazu Sambo said the name of any boat must
be boldly written and carry appropriate flags, including country and company’s
flags for proper identification.
“All commercial boat operators must take
comprehensive insurance cover from reputable insurance companies. All
commercial boats must be subjected to biannual inspection for compliance with
appropriate standards.
“Commercial boats must have minimum internal
dimension of length of 7.3m and breadth of 2.2m. The distance between seats
must be 0.6m with minimum capacity of 30 passengers”, Sambo said.
No comments:
Post a Comment