The master of an APL containership that lost nearly 50 containers overboard off Australia faces potential fines in excess of AUD 300,000 ($204,000).
The unnamed seafarer appeared before a magistrate’s court on Monday to face two charges relating to the loss of containers from the 5,510-teu APL England (built 2001).
The charges include under section 26F of the Protection of the Sea (Prevention of Pollution from Ships) Act 1983 — discharging of garbage into the sea contrary to the Act and section 141 of the Navigation Act 2012 — master did not ensure that the vessel was operated in a manner that did not cause pollution or damage to the marine environment in the coastal sea of Australia or the exclusive economic zone of Australia.
The matter was adjourned to 12 June 2020 in the Brisbane Magistrates Court, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) confirmed in a statement.
AMSA said the unloading of the damaged containers had started and was “expected to take several days to complete”.
The APL England remains under detention in the Port of Brisbane and will not be released until its serious deficiencies have been rectified.
AMSA has said earlier this week that Steamship Mutual will have to provide security of AUD 22m to secure the release of the APL England.
The maritime regulator said the funds would “provide a commitment that the owners will remediate all impacts of this incident”.
Australian authorities are currently embroiled in a legal suit with Yang Ming to recover the cost of recovering containers that fell overboard from one of its ships.
The 4,250-teu YM Efficiency (built 2009) lost 81 containers in gale-force winds off the coast of Newcastle and Port Stephens in June 2018.
The total cost of the recovery operation to remove and dispose of 63 containers, which ended in early May, has been put at about AUD 17m.
