Yearly Inspection Of Liferafts

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31760, 17 August 1968, Page 40

Yearly Inspection Of Liferafts

(New Zealand Press Association)

WELLINGTON, August 16.

The liferaft from the Cook Strait ferry Aranui, which failed to inflate properly when used in a Wellington demonstration this week, had last been serviced in May, 1967, the Minister of Marine (Mr Scott) told Parliament today.

Mr Scott said that inquiries had since revealed that a few other rafts carried aboard the Aranui had exceeded their normal 12-month servicing term, but in no case by so long a margin. Answering an urgent question from the Leader of the Opposition (Mr Kirk), Mr Scott said steps had been taken by his department to ensure that, in future, every raft aboard the Aranui and the Aramoana would be inspected and serviced once every 12 months. As a result of the malfunction of the demonstration raft this week, a very thorough investigation had been carried out Three other rafts from the Aranui which were due for servicing were tested, and inflated perfectly.

There was no evidence to suggest that the demonstration raft’s failure to inflate property came from any failure or defect in the materials or design of the raft itself, or on the part of those who serviced and repacked it The probable cause of Its failure was the unorthodox method of inflatton used during the demonstration, said Mr Scott. In order to keep

the raft well away from the side of the demonstration pool. several volunteers jumped into the water and held it in its container while the inflating mechanism was triggered off. A television film, taken at the time, showed clearly that as the raft burst from its container it was flipped over by those holding it. The result was tha‘ instead of the two halves of the container opening out—and allowing the raft to unfold and inflate freely from the top—the container opened the wrong way, and the raft had to force its way out from underneath The damage almost certainly occurred at this time, and resulted in only partial inflation of the raft

New Zealand Delegation.— The Minister of Health (Mr McKay) will lead the New Zealand delegation to the second Commonwealth medical conference to be held in Uganda from September 1 to 12.