Second captain's testimony in Kyrenia ferry disaster revealed

The investigation and judicial process regarding the Filo Jet ferry, which capsized and sank while departing from the city of Kyrenia in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) for the Taşucu Port in Mersin, are ongoing.

The ferry's captain M.Ö., along with second captain M.S., M.G., S.E., V.H., R.İ., Z.Ö., K.K., and company employee A.Ö. had been arrested. The detention periods of the suspects were extended for another eight days at the request of the police.

As the suspects were brought before the Kyrenia District Court again today, new reports prepared within the scope of the investigation and testimonies taken were presented to the court.

SECOND CAPTAIN: THE DECISION TO SAIL WAS MADE AT THE CAPTAIN'S INITIATIVE

Testifying in court, the ferry's second captain M.S. shared the information that Mersin's Taşucu Port was closed due to a storm on the day the accident occurred.

M.S. stated that the decision to set sail was made at the initiative of the first captain M.Ö., saying, "The decision to set sail was taken at the captain's initiative."

Captain M.Ö., who testified in previous hearings of the case, had argued that there were no issues with setting sail according to meteorological data.

NOTABLE FINDING IN POLICE REPORT

Police reports prepared within the scope of the investigation were also presented to the judge in court.

The report stated that no general problems were detected during the examination of the ship's documents and inspection processes. However, it was noted that the ship was missing two international certificates.

Among the documents presented to the court was a police report containing the findings of experts.

In the report in question, it was assessed that the accident could have been prevented if the ship had returned at a low speed the moment it was detected that it was taking on water.

SEARCH AND RESCUE OPERATIONS CONTINUE

So far, the lifeless bodies of nine people have been recovered in the ferry disaster that occurred off the coast of Kyrenia on Sunday, August 31, at noon.

While search and rescue operations continue uninterrupted in the region, efforts are underway to reach the 19 missing people.

As part of the search activities, the TCG Işın and TCG Alemdar ships belonging to the Turkish Naval Forces are also conducting underwater examinations.

It was stated that the detention periods of the suspects were extended to ensure the investigation is conducted properly.

YDP WITHDRAWS FROM GOVERNMENT

Following the ferry disaster, political developments also took place within the government. Erhan Arıklı, Chairman of the Rebirth Party (YDP), one of the government partners, announced that they would convene the Party Assembly to decide on withdrawing from the government.