Following complaints of frequent accidents, the Marine Department went to work scouring clean slippery floating docks used for boarding speedboats at Bali Hai Pier.
Director Eakaraj Kanthathorn said March 2 his department coordinated with city hall to scrub the pontoons of mold and barnacles to cut down on slips and falls occurring almost daily at the South Pattaya jetty.
The city’s top business leader recently called the pontoons – installed by the military to handle speedboat passengers after they were evicted from Pattaya Beach – unsafe and demanded immediate actions to prevent tourist injuries.
Eakaraj acknowledged the accidents, even noting some passengers had fallen into the sea. Luckily, rescue officers were nearby to assist them and prevent drownings.
He said the Marine Department is now providing special officers to be responsible for the safety of tourists who might fall on or from pontoons.
