JR Kyushu's Ferry Unit Punished for Water Leak Cover-Up

Tokyo, Sept. 18 (Jiji Press)--Japan's transport ministry has imposed administrative punishment on the jet ferry subsidiary of Kyushu Railway Co., or JR Kyushu, for concealing a water leak on a high-speed passenger ship.

The ministry Tuesday ordered the unit, JR Kyushu Jet Ferry Inc., to dismiss its managers of transportation safety and ship operations under the marine transportation law. It was the first time for the ministry to issue such an order.

In addition, the ministry told JR Kyushu Jet Ferry to secure safety in its second such order to the company.

While concealing the problem, JR Kyushu Jet Ferry kept operating for three and a half months the Queen Beetle high-speed ferry linking the southwestern Japan district of Hakata, Fukuoka Prefecture, and the South Korean city of Busan.

In August, JR Kyushu announced the subsidiary's failure to report to the ministry the water ingress in the bow section of the vessel, saying that the cover-up was based on instructions from the subsidiary's leadership. The then president of the subsidiary, Wataru Tanaka, was dismissed.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]