FED:Rescue boats took over 10 minutes, witness

AAP General News (Australia)
12-15-2010
FED:Rescue boats took over 10 minutes, witness

SYDNEY, Dec 15 AAP - Rescue boats took between 10 and 20 minutes to arrive at the scene
after a boat carrying asylum seekers struck cliffs off Christmas Island, throwing many
into wild seas, a witness says.

The boat, reportedly carrying up to 70 asylum seekers, including women and children,
struck the cliffs around 7am (Christmas Island time) on Wednesday.

It's been reported that at least 41 people have been rescued.

Christmas island resident Kamar Ismail said 50 to 60 people, including children, were
on board the boat before it smashed against the rocks.

He said locals threw around 30 to 40 life jackets into the water before rescue vessels arrived.

"It took about 10 to 20 minutes," Mr Ismail told ABC television.

"One person climbed onto the rocks."

He said the person had jumped off the deck "before the boat was smashed".

"The people that were still alive drifted out there away from the rocks.

"Some of them were in life jackets."

But, he said, he did not know how many people had survived.

"I am very upset because there were children on board," he said.

"There were kids on the boat and the boat was unbelievably unsafe."

Around 20 locals were on the cliffs above, but it was too dangerous for them to enter
the water or scale down the cliff face, he said.

"It was too dangerous. It was very, very rough.

"I'm worried about the kids though. You would not like to see the kids go that way."

AAP krc/maur/cdh

KEYWORD: BOAT CAPSIZE ISMAIL

� 2010 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.