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Tugs tow dangerous Malaysian ship
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Posted on Nov 16 2000
BRISBANE, Australia (AP) — Tug boats towed a Malaysian ship carrying dangerous cargo off the Great Barrier Reef on Tuesday, 12 days after it ran aground on the coral.
The 23,150-ton Bunga Teratai Satu became stuck Nov. 2 on a section of the reef close to Cairns in northeast Australia. Four tug boats dragged it off the reef at high tide Monday, said Queensland Transport Minister Steve Bredhauer.
The ship was loosened over the weekend when salvage teams set off small explosive charges around its hull to blast away coral — a move that environmental groups worried could damage the fragile marine ecosystem.
There was no immediate sign of any pollution from the ship, whose cargo included chemicals-based products listed as dangerous.
The ship, owned by Malaysia International Shipping Corp., was 4.5 miles off course when it ran aground en route from Singapore to Sydney.
Its first officer, Mashkoor Hussain Khan of Pakistan, pleaded guilty to charges of negligently navigating a ship and damaging the coral reef. Khan and the company face fines of up to $53,000 for each violation of environment laws protecting the reef.
The incident has prompted conservation groups to call for ships carrying dangerous cargo to be banned from the Great Barrier Reef.
The 1,200-mile Great Barrier Reef is the largest complex of coral reefs and islands in the world, comprising more than 2,600 individual reefs and some 300 islands off Australia’s east coast.
The reef, listed as a World Heritage site, is a magnet for scientists as well as snorkelers and divers and a major tourist draw card for Queensland state.
