[1] This occurred on the National Day of the People's Republic of China, and one of the ships was headed for the commemorative firework display, scheduled to take place half an hour later.

At approximately 20:23, the bow of Sea Smooth collided with the stern of Lamma IV on her port side,[10] rupturing two of the latter ship's watertight compartments which quickly flooded.

The vessel reportedly went down so quickly that more than 100 passengers were thrown into the water unprotected despite an abundance of life vests on board.

Sea Smooth' left the scene after the accident and continued on to Yung Shue Wan pier.

The front of Sea Smooth was damaged and its captain was also sent to the local hospital after the accident, along with several passengers, for injuries.

Andy Tsang, the Commissioner of Police, stated that seven crew members of the vessels were arrested the day after the accident, for "endangering people's lives at sea".

[26] Three days of mourning were declared by Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying, starting on 4 October, during which the flag of Hong Kong was flown at half-mast on all government buildings.

On 2 October, British Prime Minister David Cameron sent Chief Executive Leung his condolences.

[29] Catherine Ashton, High Representative for Foreign Affairs of the European Union, also expressed her sadness and sent her condolences through a spokesman.

[33] After he was informed of the accident, Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying immediately set out to the scene to oversee the rescue efforts.

for his decision to ask for help from Mainland China through the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government, despite the abundance of manpower and resources already in Hong Kong.