Maritime Accident News

Captain of grounded ship in N. Zealand facing criminal charges

The Filipino captain of a cargo ship that is breaking apart on a New Zealand reef faces up to one year in prison and a fine of up to 10,000 New Zealand dollars ($7,800), the Associated Press reports.

The 44-year-old man was charged Wednesday with operating a vessel in a manner causing unnecessary danger or risk in the Oct. 5 grounding of the Rena on Astrolabe Reef on New Zealand's North Island. Authorities said they expected more charges to be filed on his next court appearance on Oct. 19.

His name has not been released publicly upon the request of his lawyer Paul Mabey, who said that some people "may want to take matters into their own hands,"  the New Zealand Herald reported.

Greek-based Costamarer Inc., the ship's owner, has not offered an explanation to the government's demands to know why the vessel grounded on the clearly chartered reef in calm weather. The company did say it was fully cooperating with authorities and working to control and minimize the environmental damage.

A crack can be seen running from the deck to the waterline of the 775-foot Liberian-flagged ship which is severely listing in deteriorating sea conditions.

A salvage crew that would pump oil off has been unable to board the ship in 16-foot swells. They may attempt to board Thursday with swells expected to reduce to six feet.

The emergency response is being managed by Maritime New Zealand which has warned that the stern may break free. It is being held in place by three tugs so that oil can be pumped off the ship or to tow the section into shallow water.

70 of the vessel's 1,368 containers have fallen overboard. 11 containers carrying hazardous materials were still on board.

Between 220 and 330 tons of heavy fuel oil are estimated to have spilled, reported Maritime New Zealand.  The ship is believed to have held 1,870 tons of oil and 220 tons of diesel before striking the reef.

200 dead oil soaked birds have been found, 41 others were being cleaned and dead fish were washing up in what environment Nick Smith calls New Zealand's biggest marine environmental disaster.

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