Coast Guard to hold District Formal Investigation Hearing for Caribbean Fantasy marine casualty in San Juan

Media        Advisory

Mar. 15, 2017 U.S. Coast Guard 7th District Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands Contact: Coast Guard Puerto Rico PA Office Office: (787) 729-2381 After Hours: (787) 510-7923

 

Coast Guard to hold District Formal Investigation Hearing for Caribbean Fantasy marine casualty in San Juan

MIAMI — The U.S. Coast Guard is scheduled to conduct a public District Formal Investigation Hearing from Mar. 20-25, and Mar. 27-28, for the 561-foot Panamanian-flagged passenger/cargo ship Caribbean Fantasy marine casualty, which occurred on Aug. 17, 2016, and the rescue of its 511 passengers and crew members.

The hearing will focus on the cause of the marine casualty, the adequacy of fire fighting protection systems, regulatory compliance including any physical or design concerns, adequacy of the vessel’s safety management system and evacuation procedures, and the Coast Guard’s mass rescue operation and procedures.

The National Transportation Safety Board has joined in this hearing to avoid duplicating the development of facts and will fully participate. The NTSB is an independent Federal agency, which is responsible for civil transportation accident investigation, and is tasked with determining the cause or probable cause of this accident. A separate report of the NTSB’s findings will be issued independently of the Coast Guard.

Who: U.S. Coast Guard and National Transportation Safety Board
What: District Formal Investigation Hearing
When: 8 a.m. – 5 p.m., Mar. 20-25, and Mar. 27-28
Where: Caribe Hilton, 1 San Geronimo Street, San Juan, Puerto Rico 00901 

The Coast Guard will announce initiation and closing of the hearing from @uscgsoutheast using the following hashtags: #CGFIH #CaribbeanFantasy.

An e-mail has been set up for interested parties to ask questions or make comments. This e-mail will be checked regularly. The e-mail is: CaribbeanFantasy@uscg.mil

The Coast Guard plans to host a live stream of the proceedings. The web address for the live stream is: https://livestream.com/USCGinvestigations/CaribbeanFantasy

Please see below for the full hearing schedule. The schedule is subject to change based on factors including, but not limited to, witness and board availability, time and weather. Please follow @uscgsoutheast on Twitter for updates.

Passengers aboard the Caribbean Fantasy on Aug. 17, 2016, can pass information to the District Formal Investigation Hearing Board by taking the following online survey.

English: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/CaribbeanFantasyEnglish

Spanish: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/CaribbeanFantasyEspanol

Media coverage: Reporters must register to attend the hearing by emailing: marilyn.fajardo@uscg.mil. Media must register no later than 5 p.m Friday, March 17.

Media contacts: Marilyn Fajardo, Coast Guard District 7 Public Affairs Office, marilyn.fajardo@uscg.mil, 305-331-1444. Ricardo Castrodad, Coast Guard Sector San Juan Public Affairs Office, ricardo.d.castrodad@uscg.mil, 787-510-7923.

For breaking news, follow us on Twitter @uscgsoutheast.

-USCG-