The merchant vessel, Princess Miral, which ran aground five nautical miles off the city on June 21 following damage to its hull, sank on June 23 near Batpady, according to Dakshina Kannada Deputy Commissioner K.V. Rajendra.
Dr. Rajendra, who heads the District Disaster Management Committee, appointed on June 23, Karnataka Coast Guard Commander and Deputy Inspector-General S.B. Venkatesh as Incident Commander to take steps for preventing likely oil spill from the sunken vessel.
Coast Guard personnel had rescued 15 Syrian marine crew as they abandoned the vessel following ingress of water on June 21.
“Preliminary survey is being conducted by a private agent (Smith, an expert company from Singapore) to decide how to de-fuel the vessel and what to do with the ship,” Dr. Rajendra said.
The Deputy Commissioner on June 23 chaired a meeting of the Disaster Management Committee in which all stakeholders, including those from New Mangalore Port Authority (NMPA), Coast Guard, Karnataka State Pollution Control Board, participated.
“Coast Guard is the nodal agency that handles oil spill and other environmental impact resulting from incidents in deep sea. Hence, we appointed Mr. Venkatesh as Incident Commander,” he said.
During the meeting, Dr. Rajendra said that it has been submitted that the agency associated with the merchant vessel has dispatched personnel to the spot to remove furnace and engine oil from the sunken vessel and prevent possible oil spill.
“Oil spill is unlikely. But we are preparing for the worst likely scenario,” he said.
Neighbouring Kasaragod district (Kerala) has also been alerted about the incident.
The Department of Fisheries has been asked to alert fishermen against undertaking fishing around the area where the vessel has sunk.
The Karnataka State Pollution Control Board has been directed to test samples of sea water at regular intervals.
NMPA and Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited (MRPL) have been told to help KSPCB officials in this connection. All departments have been asked be on the alert and told of the steps that need to be taken in consultation with the Coast Guard, if any oil spill is seen on the coast and in the river.
Meanwhile, the Coast Guard completed questioning the crew members and handed them over to the Coastal Security Police and Mangaluru City Police on June 22. The 15 crew members have been lodged in a guesthouse in the city. They will be sent shortly to the foreigners detection centre in Nelamangala, Bengaluru, from where they will be deported.
The 90-m-long and 30-m-wide vessel was carrying 8,000 tonnes of steel coil from Tianjin in China to Beirut in Lebanon. All the crew members are found to be carrying valid travel documents, the police said.
