The owner of the rental pontoon that sunk in the Great Sound on Monday evening has said that the 13 passengers on board did not exceed the weight limit.

The incident, in which six children and seven adults were pulled out of the water, is under investigation by marine police.

Tom Steinhoff, whose company Sea Venture Watersports runs boat trips out of the Fairmont Southampton’s Waterlot Inn, said the vessel was fit to hold 12 adults.

He added that sea conditions were “fine” on the day and that the pontoon was “legally fitted and had all of the appropriate gear on board, including lifejackets”.

Mr Steinhoff told The Royal Gazette: “The boat is out of the water, we have looked at it and there are no holes in it. The boat was inspected before it went out and it was fine. It is an unfortunate incident and there is an ongoing investigation.

“I have been in contact with the guests and obviously they were traumatised when it happened, but they seemed reasonably OK. I don’t know how they were displaced around the boat. I don’t think they noticed that the boat had taken on water until it was too late. It was a self-rental, so they were riding the boat themselves.”

Steinhoff confirmed that the Fairmont Southampton is continuing to use the services of Sea Venture Watersports at present.

Water Safety Council member Paul Doughty said the incident in the Great Sound would be discussed at their September meeting. He said the council would be looking for information from the Bermuda Marine Police and Harbour Radio.

He added that if further action is deemed necessary, the matter would be dealt with by the Permanent Secretary and the director for Marine and Ports.

“It is up to the minister if anything has to change from a legislative standpoint,” he said:

“There is a very delicate thing at work here and the water is our open space. Overlegislating it is not going to go down well with Bermudians.”

He said legislation “further north” was geared to survival but in Bermuda the water temperatures in summer can still be around 88F.

He said he was not aware of all the details in this incident saying it could have been anything from an operator error to a problem with the boat.

Mr Doughty added: “I don’t know how they wound up with 13 people on a boat that size. A boat is licensed to carry so many people and 13 sounds like a lot.”

He added that with “that weight on board, even if it was 13 children it would sink “very fast”.

Mr Doughty, who was in the boat rental business for 25 years, said he used to tell his customers to be back by 6pm as it meant there would still be an hour or two of daylight to search for them if they did not return.

A Fairmont Southampton spokesperson said: “Our thoughts are with the 13 guests who were rescued on Sunday evening from a capsized boat operated by a third party.

“We are thankful everyone is safe.

“The wellbeing and safety of our guests is of paramount importance to us and our priority is to continue to provide the families concerned with the appropriate support during their stay.

“As the boat is operated by a third party and local officials are currently investigating the situation, we are unable to comment further. All inquiries should be directed to the local authorities.”