An investigation has begun after a dredger was filmed hitting a tanker at what appeared to be full speed off Malaysia.
The Star daily reported that the 3,745-dwt hopper dredger Oceanline 5001 (built 2008) crashed into a product carrier on 2 October close to Tanjung Bruas Port.
Footage shows panicked crew on the tanker shouting in horror as the dredger steams towards their vessel.
The dredger's conveyor belt then contacts the railings, being forced upward, before the bow punctures the port hull with an audible crunch.
No injuries or pollution were reported, but both ships were damaged.
The tanker was named as Strovocos, but this appears to be the 49,000-dwt Strovolos (built 1999), which was underway again in the region on Monday, according to AIS data.
Melaka agriculture, entrepreneur development and cooperative committee chairman Datuk Norhizam Hassan Baktee said he had asked the marine department to investigate.
Lack of space?
"We need to find out whether the incident was triggered due to lack of space for anchoring vessels at the congested Tanjung Bruas Port here," he added.
Seven crew on the tanker and two captains on smaller ships witnessed the incident.
"Those witnesses can provide crucial details on what actually transpired on that day," the chairman added.
Four divers were carrying out repair works to the hull of the tanker when the accident happened, he said.
The Oceanline 5001 was heading towards a sand extraction location at the edge of Melaka Port.
The Strovolos owner World Tankers Management of Singapore has been contacted for further information.
The Oceanline 5001 is operated by Huang Fan of Malaysia, which could not be contacted.
