Why have foreign ships not been towed out of Cu Lao Cham waters?

On the morning of January 2nd, Mr. Le Xuan Hung, Deputy Director of the Quang Nam Maritime Port Authority, stated that regarding the unmanned foreign vessel that ran aground in the waters off Cu Lao Cham (Tan Hiep commune, Hoi An city, Quang Nam province), the ship's owner has yet to tow the vessel out of the Cu Lao Cham waters.

According to Mr. Hung, the ship owner contacted the authorities in Quang Nam province, but due to the current bad weather and rough seas, towing the ship was impossible.

An unmanned foreign vessel drifted from Philippine waters and ran aground off the coast of Cu Lao Cham (Quang Nam province).

Authorities have now requested the ship's owner to develop a towing plan. In the meantime, authorities have erected buoys around the vessel to prevent the risk of oil spills into the marine protected area. Simultaneously, authorities are stationed near the ship's anchorage to be ready to respond to any oil or chemical spills.

Meanwhile, the Cu Lao Cham Marine Reserve Management Board stated that the ship owner and relevant authorities are currently pumping the oil out of the vessel, and this process is nearing completion. It is estimated that approximately 30,000 liters of oil remain in the ship's tanks.

Additionally, the ship owner and authorities are discussing options for repairing the holes and refloating the vessel for towing to a disposal site. The conservation area has requested the ship owner to tow the vessel out of the conservation area and carry out cleaning work to prevent environmental impact.

After the ship drifted and ran aground in Vietnam, the shipowner authorized an insurance agent in Da Nang to handle the disposal procedures. This agent has now sold the ship to a third party.

Regarding this issue, recently Major General Pham Van Ty, Deputy Chief of the Office of the National Committee for Disaster Response and Search and Rescue, and Deputy Director of the Rescue and Relief Department ( Ministry of National Defense ), chaired a meeting with relevant units on the plan to handle the incident and protect the environment caused by the King Rich ship drifting into the waters of Cu Lao Cham.

Major General Pham Van Ty requested careful planning to prevent incidents, especially in the Cu Lao Cham protected area. He also stated that while the vessel was operating normally, abandoning the ship in the event of an accident was in accordance with regulations. Therefore, when a ship drifts into Vietnamese territory, favorable conditions must be created for the shipowner to tow it and recover their property.

As Thanh Nien newspaper reported, at approximately 10:30 AM on December 1, 2023, the King Rich ship drifted ashore on Cu Lao Cham island. At 11:05 AM the same day, the ship ran aground in the Bai Dua area (Bai Huong hamlet, Tan Hiep island commune).

The King Rich, registered in Sierra Leone (West Africa), has a tonnage of nearly 14,000 tons, a length of 132 m, and a width of 21 m. It is owned by Kindom Co., Ltd., registered in Tainan City (Taiwan).

The ship, which was empty of cargo, departed from Kaohsiung port (Taiwan) and encountered bad weather while in Philippine waters, causing its propeller shaft to break. All 16 crew members were rescued by a nearby vessel and subsequently handed over to the Philippine Coast Guard.

Currently, the ship has 22 empty cargo tanks, and the engine room has 8 fuel tanks (6 FO tanks, 2 DO tanks) used to power the ship's engines.

Source link: https://thanhnien.vn/vi-sao-chua-lai-dat-duoc-tau-nuoc-ngoai-ra-khoi-vung-bien-cu-lao-cham-185240102111717153.htm