Plans underway to free coal ship off Australia
Date: 05-Aug-02
Country: AUSTRALIA
The 73,350-tonne Doric Chariot laden ran aground on a sandbar about 600 kilometres (372 miles) north of Cairns in northeast Australia last Monday, triggering an environmental scare for the coral reef, a major tourist attraction and World Heritage site.
Agents Chios Navigation said the first attempt to move the ship would be made at high tide on Tuesday evening when conditions were at their most favourable.
Chios Navigation said the Greek owners of the ship had expressed their regret to Australia over the grounding of the vessel which hit the sandbar while carrying coal to India.
"They have taken steps, including the appointment of United Salvage, the Australian salvors, aimed at achieving a swift and effective solution which minimises and hopefully avoids any potential harmful effects to the reef and the surroundings," Chios Navigation said in a statement.
The grounding of the Doric Chariot was the third major shipping incident in waters off the state of Queensland in two years, prompting environmental concerns about shipping.
Maritime officials said there had been no leakage or spillage of either cargo or fuel from the bulkcarrier and no sign of the ship breaking up but the risk remained until the vessel was removed from the reef.
Seeking to protect the Great Barrier Reef after a series of maritime accidents, the government last year brought in a tenfold increase in fines to A$1.1 million for vessels causing damage to the reef, the world's largest living organism.
Just days before the Doric Chariot ran aground, the government announced it would try to force more ships travelling through the Great Barrier Reef to use local pilots to prevent accidents.
In November 2000, the 21,000-tonne Bunga Teratai Satu, a Malaysian freighter loaded with fuel and hazardous cargo, ran aground on Sudbury Reef, 50 km (31 miles) east of Cairns. Three coral outposts had to be demolished to free the vessel.
In July this year a Liberian-flagged container ship, the 37,000-tonne ANL Excellence, ran aground in Moreton Bay, at the entrance to Brisbane harbour.
