There will be a preliminary hearing into the sinking of the ferry, Princess Ashika, next Thursday in Nuku’alofa by the Royal Commission set up by the Government to investigate the tragedy.

A letter from Port Authority Port Authority general manager, Lupeti Vi, to the Tongan Prime Minister, Feleti Sevele, revealed that welding repairs were carried out at night on the ill-fated ferry, without permission, to try to conceal how rusty the ferry was.  The letter also implied that the ferry might not have been insured.   According to the Lloyd’s Marine Intelligence Unit database, Princess Ashika had no current International Safety Management or International Ship and Port Facility Security code documentation.

A life buoy from the sunken Princess Ashika was found floating in Fijian water near Levuka about 1000 kilometers from where the ferry sank early last month.  The Princess Ashika formerly was owned by the Patterson Shipping Company of Fiji, whose owners are originally from Levuka. The buoy is being returned to Tonga.