Ramsgate port operators guilty

The operators of the Port of Ramsgate were yesterday found guilty of failing to ensure the safety of passengers when a ferry walkway collapsed, killing six people, including two Britons.

Port Ramsgate Ltd was convicted, along with two Swedish companies which manufactured and installed the high-level gangway leading from a terminal building to a ferry at the Kent port. The verdicts were returned after more than seven hours' deliberation by the jury at the Central Criminal Court in London. The judge, Mr Justice Clarke, adjourned sentencing until 26 February, when unlimited fines could be imposed.