According to Mr. Tran Van Hong - Head of the Ha Long Tourist Boat Association, immediately after the tourist boat capsize on July 19, 2025, which killed 39 people, the Quang Ninh Department of Construction, relevant agencies and the Ha Long Tourist Boat Association surveyed and decided to install the AIS - VHF system for all tourist boats.
Ships that already have this system will be checked again to connect to a single channel (channel 16) which has been specifically selected for the Ha Long Bay tourist fleet.
Up to this point, about 80% of the more than 500 cruise ships have been installed with the AIS - VHF system.
Some ships are waiting for equipment to arrive to install the Notes, we expect to complete the installation of the AIS - VHF system for all cruise ships by August 15, 2025 - Mr. Hong said.
This is an information system that most ships running on offshore routes use, with a high frequency band and no dependence on phone signal.
Meanwhile, the QN-7105 ship capsized on July 19 only had a GPS device, which depended on phone waves, while the phone signal in Ha Long Bay was jammed and many areas had no phone signal.
According to Mr. Hong, after the installation, this system will be connected to the Inland Waterway Port Authority and Quang Ninh Provincial Inspectorate, the Provincial Border Guard and possibly the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Quang Ninh province to monitor and monitor, to coordinate and handle quickly when necessary.
In addition, with ships equipped with this equipment, captains and crew members can directly contact each other when needed for support.
The owner of the Hong Minh cruise ship said that both ships of the company were previously equipped with GPS equipment but have now been replaced by the AIS - VHF system, with each set costing about 20 million VND.
To ensure information connection in all situations, to ensure safer travel for tourists and ship owners, even though it is expensive, we still install the AIS - VHF system - ship owner Hong Minh shared.
After the train capsize on July 19, Quang Ninh province has also been continuing to strengthen many measures both in weather warnings and rescue work.
In particular, implementing the direction of Quang Ninh province in enhancing safety in serving tourists visiting and staying in Ha Long Bay, from today (8.), the Quang Ninh Provincial Military Command will arrange military ships and 2 mobile boats, deploying 24/24h daily patrols on Ha Long Bay.
Accordingly, military ships and mobile boats patrol from 7-18am every day on tourist routes of Ha Long Bay, including arranging a permanent ship to blockade on Ti Top Island.
From 6pm to 7am the next morning, mobile ships returned to Tuan Chau Island to organize a 24/7 duty, ensuring full-time duty.
Along with that, Quang Ninh province is coordinating with the Institute of Earth Sciences on researching the installation of thunderstorm and tornado warning devices in Ha Long Bay and Bai Tu Long Bay.
Relevant units have also surveyed to announce points so that ships can temporarily take shelter from thunderstorms during emergency times.
