Pollution

Disaster Prevention and Management

ISSN: 0965-3562

Article publication date: 1 August 2002

185

Citation

(2002), "Pollution", Disaster Prevention and Management, Vol. 11 No. 3. https://doi.org/10.1108/dpm.2002.07311cac.002

Publisher

:

Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2002, MCB UP Limited


Pollution

Pollution

6 August 2001 – Windy Bay (USA)

More than 7,000 gallons of fuel has been recovered from the site where 180ft fishing Windy Bay (405gt, built 1975) sank Saturday (4 August) in Prince William Sound, the US Coast Guard reported yesterday. Two sheens about 2sq. miles each remained, and one of them was reported reaching the shore on Fairmont Island, which is home to eagles, sea otters, sea lions and waterfowl. Five sea lions were reported to be in the sheen. The Coast Guard said Windy Bay was carrying 35,000 gallons of diesel when she went down in deep water after striking a reef. Crew members tried to plug the fuel system before the vessel sank, but diesel began rising shortly afterward. The vessel's owner hired a cleanup crew, and the Coast Guard also contracted with Alyeska Pipeline Service Co.'s cleanup arm. The Alyeska company sent out skimming vessel Valdez Star, the largest skimming vessel in the world, plus another vessel and a barge with oil containment gear.

7 August 2001 – Local fishermen and cleanup personnel grappled, yesterday, with about 35,000 gallons of diesel leaked from fishing Windy Bay (405gt, built 1975), in Prince William Sound, which sank in about 1,000ft of water after hitting rocks. The spill has shifted and expanded on the wind and tide. Diesel patches have spread to cover10 sq. miles of the northern Sound, an area rich with wildlife and near the height of the summer pink salmon run. No one was injured in the wreck, but workers have spotted endangered Steller sea lions and humpback whales swimming through the diesel. Also, the spill has hit the beach in at least three spots. So far, workers had recovered no dead or fuel-soaked wildlife. How and why the Windy Bay hit the rocks is unclear. On Saturday morning (5 August), the boat was headed south from Unakwik Inlet. It is a tender that takes on salmon or other fish from fishermen, then carries the catch to processing plants ashore. The tide had just turned and was flooding back in when, at 1050 hrs, Windy Bay grounded on a ledge about 400yds off the eastern shore of Olsen Island. The fjords and bays near Unakwik Inlet and nearby Wells Bay are deep and rocks spike the waters. Some rocks in the area are marked. For two-and-a-half hours, skipper Doug Elden and his four-man crew tried to save the vessel by dumping stores of fresh water to lighten the vessel and pumping out incoming sea water. The crew duct-taped vents to the fuel tanks in what proved to be a futile attempt to contain diesel if the vessel sank. As the tide rose, about 7ft in three hours, Windy Bay began to float and destabilise. The Coast Guard evacuated the crew. The ship slipped off the ledge and began to sink, bow to the sky. Fuel began percolating to the surface immediately and it is believed all of the 35,000 gallons of diesel had leaked out by yesterday. Numerous fishing vessels were in the area, and a spill response vessel and crew were working only seven miles away. Alaska Chadux has been contracted to assist in the cleanup. The Coast Guard has hired the Ship Escort Response Vessel System, which serves the oil terminal and tankers in Valdez, to help. About 200 people and 30 vessels responded to the spill, including 19 salmon fishing boats. The spill crews set up boom around Fairmount Point and Fairmount Bay, trying to protect an oyster farm. Other vessels have been working along tide rips, where diesel gathers in a line of scum. By yesterday afternoon, about 10,500 gallons had been recovered, according to the Coast Guard, and about 30 percent, or 10,500 gallons, dissipated into the air. That leaves about 14,000 gallons uncollected. Both state and Coast Guard officials praised the spill response effort. The spill forced fisheries managers to cut the size of today's salmon fishery in Unakwik Inlet, but no fishing cancellations are planned. Under state law, vessel owners are responsible for spill cleanup, said Larry Dietrick of the state Department of Environmental Conservation. The owner said his insurance will cover the costs of spill cleanup.

9 August 2001 – The Coast Guard is conducting a civil investigation into the sinking of fishing Windy Bay, which resulted in a 35,000 gallon oil spill. The US Coast Guard said yesterday the vessel, that ran aground and sank in Prince William Sound Saturday, hit a rock identified on charts of the area. The unnamed ledge sits less than a mile off the east coast of Olsen Island near the entrance to Unakwik Inlet. Until yesterday the Coast Guard had not concluded whether the ledge was identified on maps. "This was a charted rock that is awash during some periods of low water", said Lt. Virginia Kammer with the Coast Guard in Valdez. As the vessel sank, she spilled 35,000 gallons of diesel fuel. The Coast Guard is conducting a civil investigation into the sinking. The owners could be liable for a fine of up to $11,000 for releasing fuel into the water. Kammer said the fact that the ledge was marked on charts would not affect the Coast Guard's decision on whether to fine the vessel's owners, but it could affect the size of the fine. She said that decision will wait until the Coast Guard completes its investigation. Windy Bay co-owner Ralph Hansen described the grounding and sinking as an accident in which the vessel somehow got off course. Hansen said that someone was on watch at the time of grounding and that the ledge was below water. Hansen said his insurance company will cover the cost of the cleanup. Meanwhile, the spill response team mobilised to clean up the spilled diesel began to demobilise yesterday, said Coast Guard Petty Officer Roger Wetherell. Alyeska Pipeline Service Co., the company that runs the oil terminal in Valdez, provided a large skimmer and other equipment. At least 19 fishing vessels, many trained by Alyeska in oil spill response, aided in the spill cleanup. Crews recovered more than 11,000 gallons of fuel. "We consider that a successful effort", Wetherell said. Vessels began to leave the area yesterday, Wetherell said. Booms to keep any lingering fuel out of the nearby oyster farms and hatchery will remain, he said. Workers continue to walk beaches searching for fuel-covered wildlife.

14 August 2001 – A press report, dated14 August, states: Fishing Windy Bay that sank in Prince William Sound and spilled almost 35,000 gallons of diesel fuel has shifted and fallen deep into a subsea canyon at the mouth of Unakwik Inlet. The vessel's change in position appears to have stimulated fresh leaking from the wreck, said Petty Officer Angel Deimler. She described the leaks as a steady stream of "marble-sized drops" of diesel. Since Saturday (11 August), Deimler said, more than 100 gallons of diesel have leaked. The number of dead and fuel-soaked birds from the spill is also rising. State and Coast Guard officials report that seven dead birds have been found. Two fuel-covered birds have been taken. At least five boats remain at the spill scene, Deimler said. Other spill cleanup workers are washing beaches by running cold water through rocks and gravel, she said. Others are walking beaches in the area, searching for oiled wildlife and studying contamination on the shoreline. Many people in the village of Eyak are disappointed by the way the spill has been handled, said Robert Henrichs, president of the native village of Eyak. He said neither the state nor the Coast Guard informed villagers about the status of the cleanup. Also, when members of an Eyak group visited the site on Thursday, they found oiled beaches where diesel pooled in their footprints. "This is a big spill. People seemed pretty blasé about it", he said. Eyak villagers met with Coast Guard representatives Friday. When the Eyak group visited the spill site on Monday, it found people cleaning the beaches; it pointed out to the Coast Guard. "We'll be watching until it's cleaned up", Henrichs said. The 180ft Windy Bay, being used to haul salmon in Prince William Sound, was headed south out of Unakwik Inlet on the morning of 4 August when she struck a charted ledge east of Olsen Island. Visibility was good and seas light. Vessel co-owner Ralph Hansen said that the rock was below the surface at the time. He termed the grounding an accident. About three hours after Windy Bay ran aground, the vessel destabilised, slipped off the ledge and sank. Using depth-finding equipment, the Coast Guard estimated the wreck to be in about 700ft of water. Over the next three days, most of the boat's diesel percolated to the surface, spreading sheens over a 10sq. mile area between Fairmount Island and Olsen Island. A large skimmer, owned by Alyeska Pipeline Service Co., oil spill cleanup company Chadux Alaska and about 20 fishing boats responded to the spill. On Monday, officials estimated that they recovered almost 13,000 gallons of diesel. About 60 percent of the spilled fuel, or about 20,000 gallons, officials estimate, dissipated into the air. Midweek, the spill cleanup team began to demobilise. On Friday boats still at the scene noticed oil surfacing faster than before, Deimler said. A new scan of the bottom shows the vessel sitting in 1,300ft of water. Why the vessel sank farther is unclear, Deimler said. A trapped air pocket may have released or "it may have just slipped and settled", she said. Cleanup crews will remain on scene until the spill is over and any spilled oil has been recovered or dissipated, Deimler said.

16 August 2001 – Fishing Windy Bay, which sank in Prince William Sound on4 August, was not properly registered with the state and is not insured to cover the costs of cleaning up the resulting fuel oil spill, a state official said yesterday. Costs for the cleanup have reached $2.5 million, but the vessel's insurance policy will cover only $500,000 of the spill response, according to state and federal officials. The vessel's co-owner, Ralph Hansen, disputed the state's claim, saying his vessel complied with all state regulations. But if state officials prove correct, they face a problem that new state legislation was designed to prevent: having the public pay to clean up someone else's spill. Under state law adopted over the past two years, owners of large fishing vessels such as Windy Bay must show they are able to spend as much as $1 million to respond to a spill. Vessels had to be registered under the financial part of the new law by 1 September 2000, said Leslie Pearson with the state Environmental Conservation Department. She said Windy Bay was not registered with the state to meet that requirement. The regulation applies to vessels over 400 tons; the Windy Bay was 405 tons. Hansen said the vessel complies with the regulation relating to the new spill cleanup requirements. Windy Bay complied with federal regulations that require vessels weighing more than 300 tons to be able to cover $500,000 in spill cleanup costs, said Coast Guard Petty Officer Angel Deimler. Hansen declined to say how much money his insurance policy would provide. Most believe the spill cleanup has gone well. Within hours of the sinking, a large oil skimmer owned by Alyeska Pipeline Service Co., an oil spill response company hired by the vessel's owner, and numerous fishing boats were on the scene. With light wind and seas, conditions were ideal to recover the fuel oil, said Pearson of DEC. By late last week, about 30% of the spilled diesel was recovered. But diesel did reach numerous beaches in the spill area. Seven dead birds have been recovered. Two more oil-soaked birds are being treated. Spill cleanup workers remain at the scene at the mouth of Unakwik Inlet. And costs continue to rise. A typical salmon fishing boat helping in the cleanup was paid $2,350 a day. Coast Guard and DEC officials say they will seek to recover the costs from the owner. "We're preparing a case right now," Pearson said.

8 August 2001 – Amorgos (Greece)

A high-level meeting on the detainment of two crew from bulk Amorgos was unable to reach a conclusion yesterday, despite international calls for their release. A decision to lift a detention order for two members of the Greek-registered vessel is still pending, government officials said yesterday. The Amorgos spilled roughly 1,150 tonnes of fuel oil into waters near Kenting National Park in January. With international pressure to release the two crew members mounting, a Cabinet task force on the matter convened yesterday to discuss the possibility of lifting the detention order, but was unable to reach a conclusion. Environmental Protection Administration officials said the meeting yesterday was just a preliminary discussion on the matter. "We will hold more meetings in the near future to develop strategies for using specific channels to urge both the shipping company and its insurance agent to offer Taiwan a letter of undertaking", said the administration's head, Hau Lung-bin, at a press conference yesterday. The administration's officials said a letter of undertaking from the shipping company or its insurance agency would ensure the firms would not avoid responsibility for dealing with the spill. In addition to the environmental administration, the ministries of justice, foreign affairs and transportation and communications were also involved in yesterday's discussion. During the meeting, the administration explained to the foreign ministry the legal reasons for the detainment of vessel's Captain Evangelos Lazaridis and Chief Engineer Vasileios Sardis. Hau said the two were being held under the Ocean Pollution Control Act. "We need them to assist with the investigation into the cause of the accident, as well as help with its cleanup and issues related to compensation", Hau said. Hau denied rumours that Taiwan's compensation request is unreasonably large and is keeping the shipping company, Nissos Amorgos Shipping Corp., from giving Taiwan a letter of undertaking. "We don't even know the total losses yet because a foreign company is still estimating the total ecological loss and will not have any results until September", Hau said

17 August 2001 – Taiwan is ready to release two crew members of bulk Amorgos, which ran aground off the island's southern coast on 14 January. On 14 August, the government said, in a statement, that master and chief engineer were detained in Taiwan because investigators required their help. The investigation has been completed and the men were no longer needed, the government said. Taiwan will release the crew when the men and the vessel's owner, Nissos Amorgos Shipping Corp., sign a statement assuring that they will obey future demands of the Taiwanese courts, the statement said. The government were negotiating compensation for the environmental damage and clean-up costs, the statement said.

18 October 2001 – After nine months of clean-up work following an oil spill near the Lungkeng Ecological Preserve in southern Taiwan's Kenting National Park, the preserve will be reopened to tourists starting 20 October, although only 200 visitors will be allowed to enter per day. On 14 January, bulk Amorgos ran aground off the coast near Kenting National Park, spilling roughly 1,150 tons of fuel oil into the water. Three kilometers of coastline, from the Lungkeng Ecological Preserve to the rocky cliffs at Oulanbi, was seriously polluted. The ensuing clean-up work among the coral reefs was extremely difficult to carry out. A spokesman of the Kenting National Park administration said today that although marine life in the area has been showing signs of revival, it would take time for a total rehabilitation.

22 August 2001 – New Carissa (Panama)

The federal government has filed a $7 million lawsuit against the owner, operator and master of wood-chip New Carissa for cleanup and other costs associated with a 70,000 gallon oil spill on the Oregon coast. The lawsuit names the ship's owner Green Atlas Shipping S.A. of Panama, operator Taiheiyo Kaiun Co. Ltd of Japan and captain Benjamin Morgado, the Department of Justice said. The government said it is also investigating environmental damages that could be pursued for payment later. Moreover, the complaints filed yesterday deny $96 million in claims filed earlier this year by the ship's owner, operator and insurer. Green Atlas filed suit in February, contending US Coast Guard charts failed to show that waters where the vessel went aground and broke apart in 1999 were unsafe. Green Atlas officials have not seen copies of the government's lawsuit, said Brian Bell, a company spokesman. "We recognize this is a complicated matter that will ultimately be resolved in court", he said. The stern of New Carissa remains beached off Coos Bay in two pieces. Consultants for the ship's owners say they are examining removal options, but think it will be at least two years before work can begin.

6 September 2001 – Ikan Tanda (Singapore)

General cargo Ikan Tanda is still aground in the same position. Tug John Rossis currently on scene. Understand the vessel is not damaged. Weather has improved, no wind and a moderate swell. More bad weather is expected tomorrow.

7 September 2001 – The pristine coastline around Scarborough (South Africa) is facing oil pollution after a diesel tank on general cargo Ikan Tanda aground there ruptured overnight. With meteorology reports indicating another cold front this weekend(8-9 September), the South African Maritime Safety Authority has ordered salvors to make the removal of 200 tons of heavy oil and roughly 100 tons of light oil from the vessel their main priority. This operation is likely to take about two days. The options are to do either a ship-to-ship or a vessel-to-shore transfer, but neither is easy under the circumstances. The vessel is lying about 300m offshore and at low tide is in water no more than 4m deep. The swell is quite heavy and white water is still breaking well to the seaward side of the vessel. This would make it very difficult to bring a fuel lighter close enough. From the landward side the rocky shore would make it hard to bring heavy equipment within reach. A salvage master and a representative of the owners Pacific Carrier Lines were dropped on board by helicopter shortly before noon today, and are now planning the next steps. The five vessel's officers are still on board. The vessel was on a voyage from Chile to Singapore and would have changed crews in Cape Town, a crew member said. Overnight, the vessel was forced closer inshore by heavy wave action and was sitting high out of the water on the rocks about 120m off the beach. Today, salvors were planning to try to connect a line to the salvage tug John Ross, which was unable to make the attempt yesterday because of rough seas. Salvage broker Godfrey Needham said the forward compartments had flooded and diesel was leaking from ruptured tanks. But he was confident that if the first attempt to pull her free failed, there were several other options.

A member of the crew said the engine failure had been caused by a small fire in the engine-room that started about 0530 hrs.

General cargo Ikan Tanda: LOF signed with Smit Pentow Marine by the vessel's owners. Tug John Ross proceeded from Cape Town to stand-by the vessel. There are fears of a 200 tonne bunker spill, as she has begun to take water and leaked 35 tonnes of diesel.

8 September 2001 – Fuel removal operations commenced this morning on the grounded general cargo Ikan Tanda, by the salvors Smit Pentow Marine. The Ikan Tanda ran aground off Scarborough, south of Cape Town, on Wednesday (5 September) and was grounded approximately 300m from the beach. The vessel, registered in Singapore, was travelling from Chile to Cape Town when she suffered engine failure, causing her to drift ashore in severe wave and wind conditions. This morning, the vessel Ocean Pride was launched and took up a position next to the grounded vessel. Fuel will be transferred from the one vessel to the other. Once the Ocean Pride has reached capacity she will make a trip to Rout Bay to discharge the fuel pumped aboard and will then return to the site to continue with the operation. The salvage team based on the Ikan Tanda spent last night finalising preparations for today's ship-to-ship transfer, which will continue over the weekend. Factors such as ongoing weather and sea conditions and the viscosity of the fuel will determine the length of the operation. Yesterday the salvage team onboard the Ikan Tanda was able to transfer the gas oil into a single tank and the remaining heavy oil into another tank. This was done in order to contain all of the fuel in one area for ease of transfer once operations commenced today. Both land and office based teams are acting as support to the operation, co-ordinating personnel and the ongoing delivery of equipment to the site by air and road. Members of the public were requested to stay away from areas of operation on both land and sea so as not to interrupt the oil removal process. The salvage tug John Ross was on the scene and a Coastwatch vessel, Kuswag VII, the oil pollution patrol aircraft, was making regular monitoring flights to the scene.

10 September 2001 – At present bunkers are still being pumped off. Weather conditions are not favourable at present, therefore refloating efforts will not commence in the near future.

Salvors spent most of yesterday transferring oil stored in the tanks at the bottom of the stricken general cargo Ikan Tanda to tanks not exposed to the sea. A spokesperson for salvors Smit Pentow Marine, Clare du Plooy-Gomes, said today that the objective of moving the oil away from tanks located below the water level was to remove it from the areas of potential danger. "It is also being done to facilitate the oil removal operation, once the weather conditions have moderated", Du Plooy-Gomes said. By yesterday morning salvors reported they had pumped 47,500 litres of heavy oil and 27,500 litres of engine-room slops or oily water from Ikan Tanda to the launch Ocean Pride. Ocean Pride made the trip to Rout Bay where she discharged the fuel, which was completed late yesterday. Ocean Pride was on standby today, waiting for the weather to moderate so that she could go back to Ikan Tanda and continue with the fuel removal operation. nu Plooy-Gomes said two "Sea Slugs" – floating oil tanks – have been airlifted to Ikan Tanda. They are capable of carrying 100,000 litres of oil between them. M salvage tug John Ross was still at the scene as well as a coastwatch anti-pollution vessel.

10 September 2001 – General cargo Ikan Tanda weathered the overnight storm apparently intact, while salvors have continued to pump her fuel oils to safer holding tanks higher in her structure. The vessel is aground in about three metres of water about 300m from the beach. Today, salvors and a naval architect were to inspect the vessel in detail yet again, to make sure the overnight lashing the weather gave her had not caused structural changes. Procedures to prepare the Ikan Tanda for towing off are continuing, and salvors still believe the vessel can be pulled off the rocks by tug John Ross. Yesterday, the John Ross manoeuvred to within half a nautical mile of Ikan Tanda in a test to see how close she could get. That is the distance at which the tug could pick up the tow, and was considered another small victory in the battle to save the vessel. The vessel's bows were also being prepared to take the strain of towing. Greg Grieve said salvors had informed residents it would be at least another week before the vessel could be moved.

11 September 2001 – All the fuel oil on board the grounded general cargo Ikan Tanda has been transferred to the vessel's topside tank, salvors Smit Pentow Marine reported yesterday. Smit Pentow Marine spokesperson Clare nu Plooy-Gomes said a salvage team on board the grounded vessel worked non-stop yesterday to complete the transfer. "All lubricating oil on board was also successfully transferred, reducing the pollution threat further, while the internal transfer of heavy oil to topside tanks continued today", nu Plooy-Gomes said.

nu Plooy-Gomes said the launch Ocean Pride was waiting for a break in the weather to resume oil removal operations. Weather conditions had moderated today with a drop in wind speed, but the swell was still six metres. "Oil removal operations will continue as soon as the weather has abated and it is considered safe to do so", nu Plooy-Gomes said. Tug John Ross was still on the scene along with a coastwatch anti-pollution vessel.

13 September 2001 – Tug John Ross was released from the scene of general cargo Ikan Tanda yesterday due to lightening operations -removal of the vessel's cargo and oil -having to be carried before a refloating attempt can proceed. Smit Pentow Marine's replacement salvage tug Wolraad Woltemade is on stand-by in Cape Town harbour and is ready to be deployed to the scene on immediate notice. Launch Ocean Pride is currently alongside the Ikan Tanda after having made a successful approach this morning. A number of approaches were made yesterday by the launch, however swell conditions precluded the vessel from coming alongside. Oil removal operations are presently under way. Supply Toto has been chartered out of Durban to assist with the salvage operation and is presently standing by off the casualty in a support role, also able to receive oil. The S.A. Kuswag 4 remains on location near the casualty and continues to monitor for pollution and is able to be utilised for oil reception should it become necessary. The S.A. Kuswag 7 reported no pollution after an overflight yesterday. Another overflight is scheduled for later today to maintain checks on any pollution. The car park in Scarborough in the vicinity of the Ikan Tanda remains in use by the salvors, in co-operation with local authorities. The car park is being utilised as a base to transport the oil ashore as well as an equipment holding area. Members of the public are again requested to stay away from areas of operation on both land and sea so as not to interrupt the oil removal process. A messenger line (light rope connection) was established between the casualty and the shore yesterday and hosing on shore has also been prepared to deploy to the Ikan Tanda today, using the messenger line, should the Ocean Pride not be able to make an approach. This technique was not deployed yesterday due to weather conditions with a westerly 3-4m swell and strong northerly setting inshore currents necessitating stronger anchor/securing points on the shore having to be put in place. Salvors are still of the opinion that the lower risk and safer option is to keep the oil on board in topside tanks on the Ikan Tanda until able to discharge the oil into the Ocean Pride. Pumping of oil to the Ocean Pride has resumed this morning, meaning that the ship-to-shore method of transfer via the hose is not being considered for now. Two flights were carried out yesterday to transfer personnel and equipment that was being kept at the land base. There are currently 23 salvage team members on board the casualty and six members of the ships staff. All pumpable oil has been removed from the bottom of the vessel and out of the present danger area. There is about 80 tonnes of oil now contained in the port gas-oil topside tank from where the ship-to-ship transfer of oil is being managed. However, there is still approximately 52 tonnes of remaining oil in other topside tanks; the transfer of which will occur once the port gas-oil topside tank oil has been transferred to the Ocean Pride. The salvors' naval architect surveyed the vessel yesterday for condition damage and will issue a full plan to regain the buoyancy of the vessel. The vessel is still taking water on deck as the weather conditions continued to remain windy with yesterday's weather report being of a south easterly wind of 12 knots with swells of up to 3-4m. On 9 September, salvors reported that fuel removal operations had progressed with 47,500 litres of heavy oil and 27,500 litres of engine-room slops (oily water) being pumped from the Ikan Tanda to the Ocean Pride.

20 September 2001 – Nakhodka (Russia)

An international fund that provisionally had paid damages to local governments and businesses affected by a 1997 oil spill from Russian tanker Nakhodka in the Sea of Japan said in court yesterday that all of the 23 billion yen in damages should be paid by the ship-owner and three other bodies. The International Oil Pollution Compensation Fund (IOPCF), based in London, had filed a suit with the Fukui District Court demanding payment from parties including Prisco Traffic in Russia, the owner of the tanker. In the first oral proceedings for the suit yesterday, IOPCF blamed the Russian firm, arguing that the oil spill had been caused by metal fatigue in the tanker's hull due to ageing. IOPCF then demanded that the firm and three others pay all of the 23 billion yen. Prisco Traffic denied any responsibility, maintaining that the spill had been caused by high waves and other extraordinary natural calamities. The local governments, including ten prefectural governments, along with fishing and tourism concerns, had asked the IOPCF and others to pay a total of about 35 billion yen. The London-based fund agreed to pay about 23 billion yen of such compensation requests, and has paid 16 billion yen so far.

17 September 2001 – Petrolimex 01 (Vietnam)

Following the collision on 7 September off Vung Tau chemical tanker Formosa One sustained no damage and is now anchored at Vung Tau Bay under an order of Baria-Vung Tau Court. Tank Petrolimex 01 sustained damages of USD 600,000. She was towed to Bason Repair Yard at Ho Chi Minh City for temporary repairs and will be permanently repaired in Singapore. The extent of oil pollution is unknown.

19 September 2001 – Authorities in southern Vietnam said yesterday they had demanded a $17.2 million deposit for the release of chem tank Formosa One involved in a collision with tank Petrolimex 01 that led to a diesel spill earlier this month. "This amount is just a preliminary estimate of the damage", said Truong Thanh Cong, director of environmental services in Ba Ria-Vung Tau province, adding that the damage to shrimp and fish farms and tourist beaches was still being assessed. Yesterday's Saigon Times Daily quoted port authority officials as saying the Formosa One would be held indefinitely unless the deposit was paid. A representative of Formosa One's Ho Chi Minh City-based agent, Hai Au, said he was aware of a figure of $17.2 million but said the issue was still under negotiation. He said solutions could include a bank guarantee arranged by the tanker's insurers. "Insurers and the local provincial authorities are still working to assess the damage, and there is no final figure yet," he said. The Saigon Times said Formosa One was still anchored at Vung Tau Bay after discharging her cargo, and Petrolimex 01 was undergoing repairs in Ho Chi Minh City.

19 September 2001 – A southern Vietnamese province has sued the owners of tank Petrolimex 01 and chem.tank Formosa One for $17.2 million in damages caused by an oil spill when they collided, an official said today. Ba Ria-Vung Tau province filed the suit Monday against Vitaco, a subsidiary of Vietnam's state-owned Petroleum Import and Export Corp., and Taiwan's Formosa Plastic Marine Corp., provincial official Truong Thanh Cong said. The province demanded $17.2 million in initial compensation from the two companies for the costs of cleaning up the environment, losses to the province's tourism industry, agriculture, fisheries and others, Cong said. Last week, Vitaco filed a suit against the owner of Formosa One for $1.6 million for lost diesel oil and the cost of repairing its tanker. Cong said the assessment of damage from the oil spill has not been completed. He noted that the province will have to negotiate with the two companies over division of the compensation. Authorities used chemicals to clean up the oil which mixed with sand on nearby tourist beaches, used normally by thousands of vacationers each day. Cong said he did not know when the beaches will reopen. Formosa One has been seized and is being held by Vietnamese authorities.

18 October 2001 – Erika (Malta)

The TotalFinaElf oil group and a number of its senior executives are to be charged for marine pollution and complicity in endangering human life by the French magistrate investigating the sinking of tank Erika off the coast of Brittany in December, 1999. Nearly two years after the break-up of the vessel, which led to extensive pollution of the French coast, magistrate Dominique de Talance has told the group and five of its senior shipping figures individually by letter that she plans to charge them. Bertrand Thouilin, TotalFinaElf's head of shipping, is the most senior of the group of five to come under scrutiny. The charges are expected to be formally notified next month in the course of hearings to which Ms de Talance has summoned representatives of the group and the executives. In the case of TotalFinaElf itself, the hearing has been fixed for 7 November. Ms de Talance will hear the statements of Mr Thouilin and his colleagues around the same time. If they are charged, the TotalFinaElf executives will join a list which already includes the master of the Erika, the Panship ship management company and one of its executives, the RINA classification society and one of its executives, three officers at the Brest maritime prefecture and a deputy manager of the regional surveillance and rescue centre at Etel in Brittany. The news that Ms de Talance was planning to charge TotalFinaElf and the group executives follows the recent disclosure of the findings of two shipping industry experts appointed by the magistrate to investigate the circumstances surrounding the disaster. The experts found that TotalFinaElf, had behaved like a shipping company in relation to the Erika rather than as a shipper, giving the master "very precise, very detailed" instructions but failing to react in an appropriate manner when it became clear that the vessel had serious problems. More seriously, they found that the Erika had no legal right to sail, her authorisation to sail having expired on21 November, some three weeks before she sank, the vessel was overloaded, her maximum authorised load having been fixed at 30,000 tonnes, and her fuel tanks were insufficiently filled, a factor which they said had had a direct impact on the technical management of the vessel, which had resulted in her foundering. This latter deficiency, according to the experts, indicated "blatant error" on the part of the vessel's master, the charterer and TotalFinaElf, in so far as they allowed the vessel to leave port in such conditions. TotalFinaElf confirmed yesterday that Ms de Talance had informed the group that she was considering bringing charges against it and said that it would be represented at the 7 November hearing by its vice president for legal affairs. It denied that it had exercised authority over the master of the Erika, saying that the fact that it asked for information did not mean that there was a hierarchical relationship between it and the crew of a vessel or that it had control over a vessel under charter. It added that it was informed of the accident which befell the Erika long after the French authorities and other concerned authorities, confirming its view that, as charterer of the vessel, it had no authority to interfere in its management or to take measures for the safety of the ship and crew.

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