The owner and insurer of the leaking bulker Solomon Trader have denied crew were absent or drunk when it grounded on a Solomon Islands reef last month.
Korea Protection and Indemnity Club and Hong Kong owner King Trader issued a statement expressing "deep remorse" for the incident involving the 74,000-dwt ship (built 1994).
Even though matters of liability are yet to be determined, they added that the situation that had arisen since 5 February was “totally unacceptable”.
The Solomon Islands Maritime Safety administration has said it is investigating a possible breach of the international safety management code because of a “lack of a crew posted on lookout/watch during that night”, the Guardian reported.
But reports of seafarers "being absent from the vessel or intoxicated at the time of the grounding are false”, the statement said.
Difficult location
King Trader said it had secured a local tug to try to remove the vessel in a timely manner.
“However, the situation worsened with the arrival of Cyclone Oma, which pushed the stricken vessel harder into the reef resulting in hull and engine room damage,” the statement added.
“The remote and hazardous location has made it difficult to secure local resources and it’s been time-consuming bringing in resources from other locations.”
“Inclement weather has made it difficult and at times impossible to access the vessel, and conditions have been too dangerous for external underwater inspections,” the companies said.
Divers are ready to inspect the ship and patch any holes, they added.
“These activities can only be done when deemed safe, as per weather and tidal conditions and in accordance with international maritime health and safety protocols,” the statement said.
"Another setback was the vessel being ransacked once the crew was evacuated, resulting in on-board resources that may have assisted with the early response being removed or damaged.
"The restoration of some on-board power yesterday has enabled a deck crane to lift key salvage equipment on board."
The remaining fuel oil is being transferred to higher tanks, while a barge is arriving from Vanuatu for lightering.
Australia gets tough
Earlier, Australia has expressed “profound disappointment” at the slow response to the Solomon Trader casualty in the Solomon Islands by the ship’s owner and its P&I club.
It said there had been a “lack of adequate communications with and responsiveness” to the Solomon Islands government.
The vessel was carrying more than 700 tonnes of heavy fuel oil which has resulted in an “extensive oil leakage around the ship” which is in close proximity to a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Aerial assessments by the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) are said to show that the oil spans five to six kilometres across the shore.
AMSA has said that there is a “high risk” the remaining heavy fuel oil on the vessel, currently estimated at more than 600 tonnes, will be released into the surrounding area.
Given the escalating ecological damage, and a lack of action by commercial entities involved, the Solomon Islands government requested Australia’s assistance shortly after the casualty.
Australia said it is supporting the Solomon Islands government by providing technical advice and assistance to inform government assessments and action in response to the spill, and supporting the government in its dealings with the responsible entities.
Australia has said that it will act to “minimise the impacts of the spill” while ensuring it does not “diminish in any way the fundamental obligations of responsible parties to properly contain and manage this incident”.
Furthermore, it said that together with the Solomon Islands government, it will continue to hold the vessel owner, South Express and the Korea P&I Club responsible as commercial entities at the centre of the matter.
“We are using our international network and standing as a close partner of Solomon Islands to advocate for Solomon Islands’ interests and bring pressure to bear on those responsible,” a government spokesman said.
“Australia expects to hand its operation over to these commercial entities within the coming weeks, once their spill response operation is underway.”
