• 2 min de lectura
• 2 min de lectura
The Indian Coast Guard carried out damage-control operations and contained rapid flooding of a ballast tank on the product tanker Sea Gull 9. After these measures the vessel was sufficiently stable to be towed to Paradip for repairs.
The incident occurred while the vessel was en route to Paradip Port from Malaysia with a cargo of approximately 9,000 metric tonnes of palm oil. The Indian Coast Guard received a distress call from the vessel at around 7:30 a.m. local time on 27 September, when it was approximately 37 nautical miles from Paradip.
The offshore patrol vessel ICGS Vishwast was dispatched immediately and arrived on scene. The tanker had reportedly suffered a main-engine failure followed by rapid flooding of a ballast tank.
A specialist ICG damage-control team boarded Sea Gull 9 and deployed dewatering pumps to remove water from the ballast tanks. The team then sealed two damaged seawater pipelines and contained a third fractured line. The vessel was stabilised sufficiently to be towed to port for repairs.
The tug Dolphin, dispatched by the Paradip Port authorities, took Sea Gull 9 in tow and moved it to a secure anchorage off Paradip for further repairs and assessment.
An ICG aircraft surveyed the area and reported a sheen of oil trailing the vessel. The sheen is presumed to have been a palm-oil leak; it had dissipated by 28 September.
