GEORGE TOWN: A boat slammed into a barge moored off Macallum Street Ghaut before its occupants was “swallowed” into the sea, the dragon boat accident inquest was told.

     Assistant coach Yee Bee Fat described the dramatic moments when five Chung Ling High School students and a teacher perished in the water during the tragedy.

     The inquest at the Coroner’s court was to determine how the accident happened.

     “We had completed a round of training and decided to turn back when I heard a crashing sound.

     "When I looked up I saw our boat was pushed towards the barge.

     “The students panicked but I told them to sit down and not make any quick movement,” he told the inquiry.

     Then suddenly, he said, the boat tilted to the right and he was thrown into the sea.

     “It all happened so fast. I managed to hold on to the boat using my left armpit and I also pulled two students with my right hand.

     "Then, a strong current sucked me underneath the barge. I somehow managed to swim and surfaced,” he said.

     Earlier, Yee, told the court that a student claiming to be the captain of the school dragon boat team had called him on Jan 16 requesting for training the next day.

     He said he told the pupils to come between 7am and 7.30am after he was told that the school had been informed about the proposed training.

     The club’s coach Tan Kok Thek testified that the pupils were reminded to wear the life jackets during training but some took it off because of the heat.

     He said he also similarly took his life jacket off after a while due to the hot weather.

     However, he said, he did not force the pupils to remove theirs.

     On Jan 17 this year, the six drowned in a dragon boat tragedy when the boat they were in hit a barge and capsized.

     There are about 10 witnesses who have yet to testify. The inquest is scheduled to continue on Dec 29 and 30.