the push of this new standard was driven in part from a range of transport - related disasters in the late 1980s , such as the falling of cross - creek ferry the lord of free enterprise in 1987 , the oil tanker curtis ao disaster in 1988 , and the montferrat thames river boat collision in 1989 . more than 400 people killed their lives in these third deaths , but no 1 one or individual was brought to account .
100 or more people lost their lives in a ferry sinking.