Sadness and anger as victims mourned

KIRIBATI – The director of Kiribati Maritime agency says there is a lot of sadness and anger in Kiribati as the country remembers the more than 80 victims of last month’s ferry disaster.

The government had announced a commission of inquiry into the tragedy and Ruoikabuti Tioon said a separate maritime investigation is underway.
Tioon said so far his office has only managed to speak to three of the seven people who survived as it tries to piece together how the tragedy unfolded.
He said some members of his team are also speaking with people on Nonouti Island and they are hoping to compile a report to present to the government next week.
“We accept people get angry. Especially if you lost your very close relative or direct member of your family. We can understand the feeling. We are also part of that feeling. Especially since we deal with maritime safety its like the burden is onto our office,” Tioon said. - RNZI