FIR filed on Chennai oil spill incident, ship captains interrogated
CHENNAI: Six days after two ships collided, leading to a huge oil spill along the Marina coast, the Minjur Police registered a First Information Report on the accident.
The FIR was filed after the police took cognisance of a report filed by Kamarajar Port and summoned the captains of the two ships. “The incident report about the collision and spill have been filed,” said Kamarajar Port sources. The accident occurred when MT Dawn Kancheepuram was entering the channel while BW Maple was exiting it.
Asked why MT Dawn Kancheepuram was allowed into the channel when BW Maple was crossing it, a Kamarajar Port official refused comment. “Yes, not allowing Dawn Kancheepuram while BW Maple has not cleared the channel could have avoided the accident,” said port sources.
S Barik, principal officer of Mercantile Marine Department, admitted the accident could have occurred due to human error.
On January 28, the day of the accident, Kamarajar Port officials had claimed there was no oil spill.
Explaining why they said so, they claimed that bunker oil that leaked from the vessel could have moved far away into the open sea due to wind and current in the wee hours, which was why they could not spot the slick.
“It is not proper to blame KPL or any other agency as all of them have taken measures immediately after the accident,” the port said in a press release.