Relatives attack sunk ferry firm in Eqypt

[lawyerlee]

Relatives attack sunk ferry firm (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4684976.stm)
BBC News

Relatives of hundreds of passengers killed when a ferry sank in the Red Sea on Friday have attacked the offices of the ship's owners.

A crowd broke into Al-Salam Maritime's offices in Safaga, Egypt, and began throwing the contents onto the street.

Family members also tried to storm a hospital in the town of Hurghada after it displayed photographs of bodies recovered from the sea.

Around 1,000 people are thought to have drowned when the ferry sank.

About 1,400 people were on board the al-Salam Boccaccio '98 when it sank after a fire broke out on Thursday evening.

[chrisinluv]

I can't blame them for going berserk at the company's offices. I would too, if someone in my family had been on that boat and I *still* had no information. I mean, they are probably desperate for any word at all. I guess the hospital is doing the best it can, but how sad!

[lawyerlee]

The whole situation is horribly tragic. And if that stuff about locking women in their cabins is true, then I hope any surviving crew members lose their jobs. That is so sick. :(

[chrisinluv]

Why would they have locked women in their rooms? It doesn't make sense, if there is a fire, they should have gotten everyone out on the deck or something.:confused:

[lawyerlee]

Why would they have locked women in their rooms? It doesn't make sense, if there is a fire, they should have gotten everyone out on the deck or something.:confused:
In some news accounts, survivors said that when people started panicking, the crew locked some women in their cabins. Other people said this was not true. So I'm not sure what to believe. And I can't imagine why they would have done this. :(

Survivors describe panic on sinking ferry (http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/02/04/ferry.sat.ap/index.html)
CNN

"We told the crew, 'Let's turn back, let's call for help,' but they refused and said everything was under control," said passenger Ahmed Abdel Wahab, 30, an Egyptian who works in Saudi Arabia.

Passengers began panicking, and crew members locked up some women in their cabins, Wahab and another survivor said, though many others being treated in Safaga hospitals Saturday said that was not true.

[BridalLace]

my take on the locking women up is this: either they thought that women would panic/cause hysteria, 'being women' and that they should be treated like children and locked in so they wouldn't 'cause more problems', or that the men thought that there might be looting or a rise in crime b/c criminals take advantage of mayhem and panic, and so they locked the women in 'for their own protection.' either way, its sucks and i just can't believe it.