MV Theresa Arctic at Mombasa port. PHOTO | WACHIRA MWANGI | NMG
Summary
- The vessel built in 1988 was laden with 46,000 metric tonnes of vegetable oil and ran aground off Kilifi while en route from Port Keelang in Malaysia, to Mombasa on June 20.
- Experts suspected that the ship’s engines may have broken down in the middle of the high seas leading to its stalling.
- The KPA placed booms around the vessels as a precaution against potential pollution due to oil spillage.
Tuvalu-flagged oil tanker MV Theresa Arctic has finally been refloated 22 days since it ran aground at Bofa beach in Kilifi.
Mombasa
port personnel refloated the ship in a repeat of the operations which
had earlier been halted twice due to bad weather and inappropriate
equipment. The Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) salvage team said due to
rough weather, it had to put contingency measures in place to mitigate
pollution risks as the local community’s water source intake is less
than 200 metres from the site.
The vessel built in 1988
was laden with 46,000 metric tonnes of vegetable oil and ran aground
off Kilifi while en route from Port Keelang in Malaysia, to Mombasa on
June 20.
Experts suspected that the ship’s engines may have broken down in the middle of the high seas leading to its stalling.
The KPA placed booms around the vessels as a precaution against potential pollution due to oil spillage.
The
ports agency dispatched its five tugs — Nyangumi, Simba, Comarco
Prince, Alpha Granada and Alpha Pina — to the site along with divers who
reported that the damage was limited to a ballast tank with no risk of
pollution.
The refloating was successfully accomplished
by combined efforts of Smit International, Alpha Logistics, Cormaco and
KPA salvage teams.
According to statistics, one of the main reasons for
oil tanker accidents is workers’ negligence which accounts for nearly
84-88 per cent.
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