the push towards this new law was driven in particular from a string of transport - related disasters in the the 1980s , such as the bombing of trans - channel ferry the herald of good association in 1987 , the oil panel piper alpha disasters in 1988 , and the marchioness thames delta boating tragedy in 1989 . more than 400 workers lost their lives in these six disasters , but no one individual or community was brought to account .
100 or more people lost their lives in a ferry sinking.