Brynhild
12-15-2010, 07:28 AM
When will this stupid government realise that these people won't stop coming (http://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/a/-/newshome/8514999/asylum-boat-crashes-several-feared-dead/)?
UPDATE: 3.25pm Rescuers have witnessed harrowing scenes of death and desperation as they struggled to rescue up to 80 people aboard a suspected asylum seeker boat smashed to pieces on jagged cliffs at Christmas Island.
Christmas Island locals woke this morning to screams for help as the wooden vessel disintegrated as it was pounded on to limestone outcrops.
Some people watched helplessly while others tried to use ladders, ropes and "hundreds of" life jackets to save those who either jumped or were tossed into the swirling seas made rough by bad weather.
Devastated locals are saying it could take years before many people come to terms with the scenes of death and despair.
Witnesses told of people being "crushed", "dead babies, women and children" in the surf" and "bodies all over the water".
Navy and Customs vessels swung into action, with personnel on rubber rafts trying to pluck as many people as possible from the sea.
Prime Minister Julia Gillard, who was on holiday, will return to work to deal with the fallout of the boat disaster.
WA Premier Colin Barnett said he had been briefed and that there had been a large number of casualties.
A statement from the Prime Minster's office said: "The Prime Minister this afternoon has spoken with the Deputy Prime Minister, the Minister for Home Affairs, and Customs and Border Protection Chief Executive Officer Michael Carmody, regarding the incident.
"This has been a tragic event, and it will be some time before there is a full picture of what has happened.
"The Government’s focus and absolute priority now is on rescue, recovery and treatment of those injured."
Authorities confirmed earlier today that 41 people had been rescued but they could not confirm the number of casualties. Up to 80 people were thought to be on the vessel.
Acting Prime Minister Wayne Swan confirmed earlier today that people had died.
Mr Swan said two boats - one navy, one Customs - were involved in the rescue. He was unable to give exact figures on how many had been saved and how many had drowned.
"Sadly some bodies have been retrieved. That rescue is ongoing," he said earlier today.
Mr Swan said he had briefed Ms Gillard on the tragedy.
"This is a serious incident," he said.
While the tragedy will put the Government's border protection regime under fresh scrutiny, Mr Swan said it was inappropriate to hold a wider debate about those policies at this time.
"We've just had a tragic incident. Now is not the time for that debate."
People on Christmas Island heard screaming from the boat and rushed to help.
Residents described the scene as a “tragedy” and “carnage”.
“The sea is awash, you can’t rescue them from the shore and it took Customs ages to get to them,” one resident said.
Amnesty International said the incident the drowning of an unknown number of people was a tragic reminder of the dangers facing asylum seekers in their search for safety.
“The decision to get on a boat to seek asylum is never taken lightly, and it should be remembered that asylum seekers who come to Australia are human beings asking for our help,” Amnesty International Australia campaigns director Andrew Beswick said.
“In the vast majority if cases, asylum seekers who come to Australia by boat are found to be genuine refugees fleeing violence and persecution.”
Another Christmas Island resident, who wanted to remain anonymous, described the chaos. He was among a group of around 50 locals who were trying to rescue those in the water.
“We threw ropes over the cliffs and we must have thrown in a couple of hundred life jackets. About 15 or 20 people managed to get into the jackets but there are bodies all over the water.
“There are dead babies, dead women and dead children in the water. The swell is unbelievably big.”
He said he and others who live near the cliffs were woken up around 6am by the sound of screams.
Several people ran to the edge of the cliffs and saw the boat, estimated to be about 40 feet long.
“Their motor was not working so they had lost all power. For a while it looked all right as it was sitting around the front of Flying Fish Cove. But then one big wave came along and smashed them onto the cliff. Once they hit that cliff it was all over,” he said.
The witness said that a navy vessel and two small navy motorboats were braving the conditions and plucking survivors from the water.
It is believed that many of the refugees were wearing life jackets.
A Royal Flying Doctor Service spokeswoman said two critical care teams, each consisting of a doctor and a nurse, were scheduled to leave Perth for Christmas Island. She said at this stage it was believed three patients would be conveyed back to WA.
Two of those patients had suffered head injuries while the third had suffered abdominal injuries.
Flights to the island were being hampered by bad weather.
Local Mick Tassone said he had been getting ready for work about 5am at his Oceanside home when he saw a boat load of asylum seekers float past, “lurching” in the rough seas.
He said the asylum seekers had been screaming in fear.
“They were waving their arms and yelling ‘Australia, Australia, help, help, help’,” Mr Tassone said. “The boat was bouncing around and it looked like they were in serious trouble. Soon after that I could smell diesel and I knew they must have crashed or something.”
He said he could still see the boat, which was upturned floating in the water. “It is pretty devastating stuff out there,” Mr Tassone said. “There are navy boats flying around out there trying to rescue people”.
The Australian Federal Police issued a brief statement saying it was working with other Government agencies on Christmas Island to coordinate the immediate response to the disaster
"This response is ongoing and the AFP’s priority is the safety of all involved in the incident," the statement said.
The National Critical Care and Trauma Response Centre in Darwin, which coordinates mass medical evacuations involving Australians in the north of the country and neighbouring nations, said it was aware of the incident and waiting for further advice on whether survivors would be brought to mainland hospitals.
Seas are rough around Christmas Island, with five to six metre swells because of tropical lows.
Christmas Island local Simon Foster, who spoke to thewest.com.au from a cliff overlooking the crash site, said the boat was upside down in the sea, with debris scattered across the surface of the ocean.
Mr Foster said it appeared the boat had crashed into jagged rocks below the cliffs as it had attempted to land at Flying Fish Cove – the only viable landing point on the island for vessels.
He said the seas last night and this morning were as rough as he had seen in many months.
He said he could not tell whether there were people in the water scattered amongst the debris. “There is so much stuff in the water you can’t tell what is debris and what is people,” Mr Foster said.
“I have heard that the Navy boat was cruising around earlier picking people up out of the water but it’s hard to tell what’s going on. I definitely would not want to be out in that water at the moment whether you were in the water or in a boat – it’s shocking out there.”
He said “half the town” had gone near the crash site to try to offer assistance, with some throwing makeshift flotation devices into the water to help the refugees.
Christmas Island shire councillor Kamar Ismail, who was also on the cliff overlooking the crash site, said he saw at least two or three bodies floating in the water.
He said he and about 20-30 people were trying to pull people from the area after the crash but the sea was too rough.
“We we were throwing out ropes and lifejackets but no one could grab on to the ropes. I saw children hanging onto to the side of the boat just holding on. There were all others hanging on to rocks and what was left of the boat. Wave after wave was coming in and it was very, very rough. The rocks were very jagged and it’s a very steep area around there.
“It was just a horrible situation, just so sad. But what can you do, we tried very hard to help and so many people couldn’t get out.”
Mr Ismail said a Navy boat began taking over the rescue effort.
Another Christmas Island resident told thewest.com.au this morning that from the top of the cliffs the scene was chaotic.
He said he could see the hull of the upturned boat and huge amounts of debris in the water.
The resident said the weather conditions had been among the worst he had seen at the island.
Christmas Island shire president Gordon Thomson said he understood it was a “very bad situation” but he was unclear of the details.
There are reports of several bodies in the water.
The seas have been so heavy over recent days that the Navy has been unable to take a separate group from one of its vessels ashore.
A Border Protection spokesman said "they were across the incident" but would not comment further.
Customs vessels are involved in the rescue effort.
One resident has told thewest.com.au that the island’s nine-bed hospital has stopped seeing any patients today in anticipation of treating survivors.
It is understood WA police may send a team of detectives from the major crime squad as well as forensic experts to help with the investigation and identification of those killed.
Royal Darwin Hospital's Dr Len Notaras, executive director of the National Critical Care and Trauma Response Centre, told Sky News when the Centre was informed of the tragedy it was put on standby in case it needed to retrieve and resuscitate victims.
He said his team had been working with WA health authorities and he understood they would be tasked with retrieving survivors.
“Our teams remain on alert but tragically I think there are more deceased victims of this horrible event than have survived it,” he said.
Dr Notaras said given the collision with the sharp rocks in foul weather he would expect survivors to have suffered traumatic injuries such as head injuries and broken limbs as well problems from being thrown into the water.
“It’s just one of those horrendous events that saddens us all,” he said.
These people seek to enter the country through illegal means and claim asylum. It's a tragic circumstance and could easily be avoided - by putting a stop to the smugglers bringing them!
UPDATE: 3.25pm Rescuers have witnessed harrowing scenes of death and desperation as they struggled to rescue up to 80 people aboard a suspected asylum seeker boat smashed to pieces on jagged cliffs at Christmas Island.
Christmas Island locals woke this morning to screams for help as the wooden vessel disintegrated as it was pounded on to limestone outcrops.
Some people watched helplessly while others tried to use ladders, ropes and "hundreds of" life jackets to save those who either jumped or were tossed into the swirling seas made rough by bad weather.
Devastated locals are saying it could take years before many people come to terms with the scenes of death and despair.
Witnesses told of people being "crushed", "dead babies, women and children" in the surf" and "bodies all over the water".
Navy and Customs vessels swung into action, with personnel on rubber rafts trying to pluck as many people as possible from the sea.
Prime Minister Julia Gillard, who was on holiday, will return to work to deal with the fallout of the boat disaster.
WA Premier Colin Barnett said he had been briefed and that there had been a large number of casualties.
A statement from the Prime Minster's office said: "The Prime Minister this afternoon has spoken with the Deputy Prime Minister, the Minister for Home Affairs, and Customs and Border Protection Chief Executive Officer Michael Carmody, regarding the incident.
"This has been a tragic event, and it will be some time before there is a full picture of what has happened.
"The Government’s focus and absolute priority now is on rescue, recovery and treatment of those injured."
Authorities confirmed earlier today that 41 people had been rescued but they could not confirm the number of casualties. Up to 80 people were thought to be on the vessel.
Acting Prime Minister Wayne Swan confirmed earlier today that people had died.
Mr Swan said two boats - one navy, one Customs - were involved in the rescue. He was unable to give exact figures on how many had been saved and how many had drowned.
"Sadly some bodies have been retrieved. That rescue is ongoing," he said earlier today.
Mr Swan said he had briefed Ms Gillard on the tragedy.
"This is a serious incident," he said.
While the tragedy will put the Government's border protection regime under fresh scrutiny, Mr Swan said it was inappropriate to hold a wider debate about those policies at this time.
"We've just had a tragic incident. Now is not the time for that debate."
People on Christmas Island heard screaming from the boat and rushed to help.
Residents described the scene as a “tragedy” and “carnage”.
“The sea is awash, you can’t rescue them from the shore and it took Customs ages to get to them,” one resident said.
Amnesty International said the incident the drowning of an unknown number of people was a tragic reminder of the dangers facing asylum seekers in their search for safety.
“The decision to get on a boat to seek asylum is never taken lightly, and it should be remembered that asylum seekers who come to Australia are human beings asking for our help,” Amnesty International Australia campaigns director Andrew Beswick said.
“In the vast majority if cases, asylum seekers who come to Australia by boat are found to be genuine refugees fleeing violence and persecution.”
Another Christmas Island resident, who wanted to remain anonymous, described the chaos. He was among a group of around 50 locals who were trying to rescue those in the water.
“We threw ropes over the cliffs and we must have thrown in a couple of hundred life jackets. About 15 or 20 people managed to get into the jackets but there are bodies all over the water.
“There are dead babies, dead women and dead children in the water. The swell is unbelievably big.”
He said he and others who live near the cliffs were woken up around 6am by the sound of screams.
Several people ran to the edge of the cliffs and saw the boat, estimated to be about 40 feet long.
“Their motor was not working so they had lost all power. For a while it looked all right as it was sitting around the front of Flying Fish Cove. But then one big wave came along and smashed them onto the cliff. Once they hit that cliff it was all over,” he said.
The witness said that a navy vessel and two small navy motorboats were braving the conditions and plucking survivors from the water.
It is believed that many of the refugees were wearing life jackets.
A Royal Flying Doctor Service spokeswoman said two critical care teams, each consisting of a doctor and a nurse, were scheduled to leave Perth for Christmas Island. She said at this stage it was believed three patients would be conveyed back to WA.
Two of those patients had suffered head injuries while the third had suffered abdominal injuries.
Flights to the island were being hampered by bad weather.
Local Mick Tassone said he had been getting ready for work about 5am at his Oceanside home when he saw a boat load of asylum seekers float past, “lurching” in the rough seas.
He said the asylum seekers had been screaming in fear.
“They were waving their arms and yelling ‘Australia, Australia, help, help, help’,” Mr Tassone said. “The boat was bouncing around and it looked like they were in serious trouble. Soon after that I could smell diesel and I knew they must have crashed or something.”
He said he could still see the boat, which was upturned floating in the water. “It is pretty devastating stuff out there,” Mr Tassone said. “There are navy boats flying around out there trying to rescue people”.
The Australian Federal Police issued a brief statement saying it was working with other Government agencies on Christmas Island to coordinate the immediate response to the disaster
"This response is ongoing and the AFP’s priority is the safety of all involved in the incident," the statement said.
The National Critical Care and Trauma Response Centre in Darwin, which coordinates mass medical evacuations involving Australians in the north of the country and neighbouring nations, said it was aware of the incident and waiting for further advice on whether survivors would be brought to mainland hospitals.
Seas are rough around Christmas Island, with five to six metre swells because of tropical lows.
Christmas Island local Simon Foster, who spoke to thewest.com.au from a cliff overlooking the crash site, said the boat was upside down in the sea, with debris scattered across the surface of the ocean.
Mr Foster said it appeared the boat had crashed into jagged rocks below the cliffs as it had attempted to land at Flying Fish Cove – the only viable landing point on the island for vessels.
He said the seas last night and this morning were as rough as he had seen in many months.
He said he could not tell whether there were people in the water scattered amongst the debris. “There is so much stuff in the water you can’t tell what is debris and what is people,” Mr Foster said.
“I have heard that the Navy boat was cruising around earlier picking people up out of the water but it’s hard to tell what’s going on. I definitely would not want to be out in that water at the moment whether you were in the water or in a boat – it’s shocking out there.”
He said “half the town” had gone near the crash site to try to offer assistance, with some throwing makeshift flotation devices into the water to help the refugees.
Christmas Island shire councillor Kamar Ismail, who was also on the cliff overlooking the crash site, said he saw at least two or three bodies floating in the water.
He said he and about 20-30 people were trying to pull people from the area after the crash but the sea was too rough.
“We we were throwing out ropes and lifejackets but no one could grab on to the ropes. I saw children hanging onto to the side of the boat just holding on. There were all others hanging on to rocks and what was left of the boat. Wave after wave was coming in and it was very, very rough. The rocks were very jagged and it’s a very steep area around there.
“It was just a horrible situation, just so sad. But what can you do, we tried very hard to help and so many people couldn’t get out.”
Mr Ismail said a Navy boat began taking over the rescue effort.
Another Christmas Island resident told thewest.com.au this morning that from the top of the cliffs the scene was chaotic.
He said he could see the hull of the upturned boat and huge amounts of debris in the water.
The resident said the weather conditions had been among the worst he had seen at the island.
Christmas Island shire president Gordon Thomson said he understood it was a “very bad situation” but he was unclear of the details.
There are reports of several bodies in the water.
The seas have been so heavy over recent days that the Navy has been unable to take a separate group from one of its vessels ashore.
A Border Protection spokesman said "they were across the incident" but would not comment further.
Customs vessels are involved in the rescue effort.
One resident has told thewest.com.au that the island’s nine-bed hospital has stopped seeing any patients today in anticipation of treating survivors.
It is understood WA police may send a team of detectives from the major crime squad as well as forensic experts to help with the investigation and identification of those killed.
Royal Darwin Hospital's Dr Len Notaras, executive director of the National Critical Care and Trauma Response Centre, told Sky News when the Centre was informed of the tragedy it was put on standby in case it needed to retrieve and resuscitate victims.
He said his team had been working with WA health authorities and he understood they would be tasked with retrieving survivors.
“Our teams remain on alert but tragically I think there are more deceased victims of this horrible event than have survived it,” he said.
Dr Notaras said given the collision with the sharp rocks in foul weather he would expect survivors to have suffered traumatic injuries such as head injuries and broken limbs as well problems from being thrown into the water.
“It’s just one of those horrendous events that saddens us all,” he said.
These people seek to enter the country through illegal means and claim asylum. It's a tragic circumstance and could easily be avoided - by putting a stop to the smugglers bringing them!