Coal transport accidents

The dramatic growth in the volume of coal traded internationally is likely to result in an increased number of major coal transport accidents.

Coal transport accidents
Coal transport accidents include the:


 * Pasha Bulker coal ship runs aground at Newcastle, Australia: In June 2007 the MV Pasha Bulker ran aground during a major storm on 8 June 2007 on Nobbys Beach in Newcastle, New South Wales. Early on the morning of 8 June 2007, Newcastle Port Corporation radioed the 56 moored ships waiting off the coast to load coal to warn them to move out to sea to escape the approaching storm. The Pasha Bulker, along with 10 other ships, did not heed the warning. As the storm hit, the Pasha Bulker could not clear the coast and it became beached at 9:15am. The ship never called for tug assistance, ran aground with a fully operational engine room and still had both anchors stored in the hawsepipes leading some maritime experts to believe that proper precautions were not taken by the ship's captain. The ship was empty of any cargo at the time, waiting to load 58,000 tonnes of coal from Newcastle Port.


 * The Australian Transport Safety Bureau released a report into the grounding, which includes analysis of port capacity controls, bridge audio recordings, radar tracks, ships logs, weather and other ship movements at the time. It identifies several safety issues.


 * Shen Neng 1 bulk carrier crashing into the Great Barrier Reef: On 3 April 2010, Shen Neng 1 was transiting from Gladstone, Queensland to China carrying a cargo of 65,000 tonnes of coal, she ran aground 70km off Great Keppel Island, Australia. At the time of the grounding, Shen Neng 1 was reported to have been travelling at full speed. She was severely damaged on her port side, and a 3 km long oil slick was later reported to have been seen. The ship went aground 5.8 nautical miles outside the shipping lane. It is in a restricted area which forms part of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park, a World Heritage Site designated by UNESCO.


 * Two investigations were held into the grounding, one by the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) and the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB). Queensland Premier Anna Bligh said that the Government of Queensland would be investigating why the ship was so far off route. The preliminary ATSB investigation found fatigue as the major contributor to the grounding. Prior to the grounding there was no checks to ensure fatigue was minimized by the governing authorities (AMSA). A news story claimed that the ship was attempting to take a shortcut when it ran aground.


 * The Panamanian-registered MV Rak, which was carrying 60,000 tonnes of Indonesian coal, sank approximately 20 nautical miles off the Mumbai. The inspector general of the Coast Guard, Mr SPS Basra, stated that the suspected cause was leaks in the hull allowing water into the ship's holds. The ship was also carrying 290 tons of fuel oil and 50 tons of diesel at the time of sinking.


 * the crew of a barge owned by the Drummond Company dumped 2,000 tonnes of coal into the ocean in an unsuccessful bid to avoid the barge sinking. Drummond did not report the sinking to Colombian environmental authorities until 17 days after the accident even though its environmental licence required the company to report such an event within a maximum of three days. Director of the Colombian Environmental Licensing Agency (ANLA), Luz Helena Sarmiento, accused Drummond of covering the accident up.  Drummond claimed the coal was dumped overboard to save lives but Sarmiento said that the company's licence did not allow it to dump into the ocean to save the barge. In 2011 Drummond exported approximately 25 million tons of coal from its mines near La Loma through Puerto Drummond.


 * a Greek-owned but Panamanian registered ship, MV Smart, was carrying an estimated 140,000 tonnes of South African coal when it was grounded on a sandbank after loading at the Richards Bay Coal Terminal. The MV Smart was carrying a shipment of coal to the Fangcheng port in China. Platts reported that the ship suffered engine failure and was pushed by 10 metres seas onto the sandbank. After the ship became stranded three tug boats attempted to pull the vessel off but later in the day it buckled and then broke in two. The crew of 23 were airlifted off the ship. Platts reported that "the ship had been chartered by Chinese trader Minmetals and was carrying 5,500 kcal/kg NAR South African thermal coal bought from a Swiss trading house." It was reported that the ship lost steering four minutes after the harbour pilot handed control of the ship over to its captain. While the tugboats returned to assist the ship, they weren't strong enough to keep the ship from grounding, according to the South African Maritime Safety Authority.


 * The MV Smart was reported to be carrying up to 2,000 tonnes of oil. The Department of Environmental Affairs said that the priority of an emergency response team was protect the Mhlathuze Sanctuary south of the wreck."The sanctuary is a breeding and nursing area for important fish species, and it provides a home to over 20000 birds," said Zolile Nqayi, a spokesman for the Department of Environmental Affairs.

Related SourceWatch articles

 * Coal transport accidents in Australia
 * Coal transport accidents in India
 * Coal transport accidents in New Zealand
 * Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area and coal