Balikpapan (Antaranews) - The police has named a Chinese national ZD (50), captain of the MV Ever Judger, as suspect for causing Pertamina`s undersea pipe rupture, which sparked a major oil spill in the waters of Balikpapan Bay.
ZD and 21 crew members of the Panama-flagged ship were not allowed to leave Balikpapan, and the police have seized their passports, East Kalimantan Police` Director for Special Crime Unit Senior Commissioner, Yustan Alpiani, stated here on Thursday.
The suspect was charged with article 99 of law on the preservation of environment and faced a maximum jail sentence of nine years. He was also charged with article 359 of the criminal code, with maximum penalty of five years in jail.
The oil spill in Balikpapan Bay on March 31 ignited a huge fire that killed five fishermen and polluted 12.7 thousand hectares of the waters.
"It was the ship captain who had ordered to drop the anchor to 1 shackle (27.5 meters)," Alpiani noted.
The pilot boat stated they should only drop the anchor to 1 meter below the water surface, he added.
The police also found a material at the tip of the anchor, which was identical to the concrete that covered the broken pipe.
The pilot boat actually called on the ship to raise the anchor, because it was not allowed to anchor in the area. The ship engine was then stopped, but the anchor was raised while the ship was still moving.
A location with undersea oil and gas pipe is determined as a restricted area where ships could pass but not anchor. The area was marked by buoys with flashing yellow lights.
Alpiani revealed that the navy`s divers found a deep and long ditch that stopped at the point where the anchor touched the oil pipe.
The pipe was dragged by the anchor, and this stopped the ship from moving, he explained.
The incident occurred before 3 a.m. when the oil spill was detected.
The ship had finished loading 78 thousand tons of coal at Gunung Bayan jetty and was waiting for the high tide to exit Balikpapan Bay and head to Malaysia.
MV Ever Judger was a bulk carrier registered in Panama, managed by a Hong Kong-based company. (*)
COPYRIGHT © ANTARA News Kalimantan Timur 2018
ZD and 21 crew members of the Panama-flagged ship were not allowed to leave Balikpapan, and the police have seized their passports, East Kalimantan Police` Director for Special Crime Unit Senior Commissioner, Yustan Alpiani, stated here on Thursday.
The suspect was charged with article 99 of law on the preservation of environment and faced a maximum jail sentence of nine years. He was also charged with article 359 of the criminal code, with maximum penalty of five years in jail.
The oil spill in Balikpapan Bay on March 31 ignited a huge fire that killed five fishermen and polluted 12.7 thousand hectares of the waters.
"It was the ship captain who had ordered to drop the anchor to 1 shackle (27.5 meters)," Alpiani noted.
The pilot boat stated they should only drop the anchor to 1 meter below the water surface, he added.
The police also found a material at the tip of the anchor, which was identical to the concrete that covered the broken pipe.
The pilot boat actually called on the ship to raise the anchor, because it was not allowed to anchor in the area. The ship engine was then stopped, but the anchor was raised while the ship was still moving.
A location with undersea oil and gas pipe is determined as a restricted area where ships could pass but not anchor. The area was marked by buoys with flashing yellow lights.
Alpiani revealed that the navy`s divers found a deep and long ditch that stopped at the point where the anchor touched the oil pipe.
The pipe was dragged by the anchor, and this stopped the ship from moving, he explained.
The incident occurred before 3 a.m. when the oil spill was detected.
The ship had finished loading 78 thousand tons of coal at Gunung Bayan jetty and was waiting for the high tide to exit Balikpapan Bay and head to Malaysia.
MV Ever Judger was a bulk carrier registered in Panama, managed by a Hong Kong-based company. (*)
Editor : Didik Kusbiantoro
COPYRIGHT © ANTARA News Kalimantan Timur 2018