High-speed ferry hits breakwater in Macau’s harbour, injuring 22 people

HONG KONG – A high-speed ferry heading to Macau crashed into a breakwater in the Asian gambling hub’s harbour Friday, injuring 22 people.

The hydrofoil was carrying 220 people when it hit the breakwater at about 9:30 a.m. after departing nearby Hong Kong about an hour earlier, the ferry’s operator, Shun Tak Holdings Ltd., said in a brief statement.

Ten of the injured were taken ashore on another boat and were able to walk on their own to ambulances that took them to a hospital, the statement said. It did not provide details on the other 12 people who were injured.

The ferry route between the coastal Chinese territories of Macau and Hong Kong is one of the world’s busiest, with vessels departing around the clock carrying visitors, many from mainland China, to and from the former Portuguese colony’s glitzy casinos. The waters surrounding the two cities are also growing increasingly crowded with cargo ships and ferries plying routes to the mainland.

In May, 30 people were hurt when a Macau-bound fast ferry collided with a mainland Chinese cargo ship in Hong Kong’s western waters.