§ 68. Investigations by inspector; penalties; reports. The inspector upon order or pursuant to direction of the commissioner shall investigate all violations and charges of violations of the provisions of this article which are applicable to public vessels. Should the investigations disclose that a person has sustained bodily injury through accident caused as the direct result of any such violation, he shall file with the district attorney of the county in which such violation occurred, a statement of the nature of the violation, the injury sustained and the names of the persons involved and of the witnesses thereto. Any master, owner, or other person violating any of such provisions, in addition to any other punishment prescribed by this chapter or other law, shall forfeit to the people of the state a sum of not less than twenty-five nor more than one hundred dollars to be fixed by the court or justice for each and every offense; every violation shall be a separate and distinct offense, and, in case of a continuing violation, every day's continuance thereof shall be deemed to be a separate and distinct offense.