Harbour Awash with More Chaos as 12 Dragon Boats Sink

Harbour awash with more chaos as 12 dragon boats sink on day 2 Zhuang Pinghui At least a dozen boats sank in Victoria Harbour yesterday afternoon as a second day of chaos hit the international dragon boat races. The schedule was also delayed by four hours, numerous complaints were lodged and accusations made by spectators, teams and even the organisers. A dozen boats sank between 2pm and 7pm following the eight that went under on Saturday. Racers blamed high waves in the harbour for the accidents. The races, which started in Tsim Sha Tsui in 1976, had been staged on Sha Tin's Shing Mun River for the past 10 years before returning to the harbour at the weekend. "The waves were much bigger than 10 years ago," said Chan Kwai-chun, a 13-year veteran with the Hong Kong Dragon Boat Association. "Reclamation work has made the harbour narrower. As a result, we had to paddle through bigger waves." The Liechtenstein Princely Navy, the only team from Europe taking part, also complained about the choppy going. The team collided with another boat and sank in the first round. "The water was quite rough," said team captain Silvan Colvni. "We raced four times and we sank three times. I have never drunk so much Hong Kong harbour water in my life." A spokesman for the Observatory said the wind was "moderate to fresh" - a degree not considered very strong. Police estimated about 3,500 spectators watched the races, but organisers said they had sent out 10,000 tickets and many people entered the area without tickets. Some spectators said no seating or stands had been prepared. Mike Chung Chi-hong, president of organisers the Hong Kong Dragon Boat Association, attributed all the complaints to the limitations posed by the Tsim Sha Tsui waterfront and a lack of funding. He said the embarking area in Tsim Sha Tsui could accommodate only two boats at the same time compared to eight boats in Sha Tin. Mr Chung also criticised Hong Kong teams for complaining too much. "I have been involved in dragon boat races all over the world for over 10 years, and [such a] mess has only happened in Hong Kong." He said if they did not receive sufficient funding next year the races would have to return to Sha Tin. More pictures - A3