SUBMIT PICTURE: MTAsphalt Spirit Photo: MarineTraffic.com/ mgklingsick_aol_com

The captain of a Marshall Islands- flagged vessel has actually been founded guilty and also fined $3,000 AUD in Australia after waiting numerous hrs to report that his ship had actually endured a major engine failing and also was adrift off the coastline of Queensland, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority has actually revealed.

The event bring about the sentence happened last January 31, 2019, when the vessel vessel Asphalt Spirit endured a major engine failure while around 30km northeast of Point Lookout on North Stradbroke Island throughout a trip from Korea to Australia with 14,000 statistics lots of asphalt.

According to the AMSA, the ship’s master waited 6 hrs after the first engine failing to report the event, through e-mail, to the ASMA. The ASMA stated modeling forecasts revealed that the ship remained in threat of running grounded on along the southerly pointer of the island within 17 hrs if the ship remained to wander without power.

The ship’s master at some point replied to AMSA regarding 3.5 hrs after his first e-mail and also validated the engine damages can not be fixed mixed-up. Meanwhile, AMSA had actually currently scheduled a pull fromBrisbane The ship’s insurance company at some point scheduled a personal business pull from Svitzer to meet the vessel and also tow it back to Brisbane.

On December 9, 2019, the master begged guilty in the Brisbane Magistrates Court to one matter of stopping working to report an aquatic event to authorities immediately, as needed by area 11( 1) of the Protection of the Sea (Prevention of Pollution from Ships) Act 1983. He was later on fined $3000.

“The responsibility to report a marine incident to authorities without delay and the consequences for failing to do so, ultimately rests on the shoulders of the ship’s master,” stated AMSA Chief Executive Officer Mick Kinley.

“We have reporting requirements in the maritime industry for a reason. Authorities need to know if you are in trouble so they can provide assistance where possible to resolve the problem before it leads to a catastrophe. Without intervention, the incident with the Asphalt Spirit could have been an environmental disaster. It goes without saying that the reluctance from the master and company management to report the incident to AMSA with the urgency that it warranted, is completely unacceptable. Failure to report a marine incident without delay places the safety of your ship and crew, as well as our precious marine environment, at further risk and it could result in a conviction that will follow you for the rest of your career,” Kinley included.