On Monday, Alaskan state officials announced that the owners and operators of the bulk freighter, M/V Selendang Ayu, that sank off the north shore of Unalaska Island in the Bering Sea in 2004 have agreed to pay the state of Alaska nearly $850,000 to settle oil spill, wreck removal and lost fish tax claims.

The settlement with the vessels operator IMC Shipping Co. Pte. Ltd. (IMC) of Singapore and owner Ayu Navigation of Port Klang, Malaysia, brings the total amount of clean-up costs and fees to more than $112 million for the December 2004 sinking.  The accident resulted in the a spill of approximately 336,000 gallons of fuel oil and diesel fuel.

With the exception of the Exxon Valdez, the penalty collected is the largest civil oil spill penalty ever recovered by the state of Alaska.

Flashback to December 2004

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TROUBLE ON OILY WATERS.
MV COSCO BUSAN vs THE BRIDGE ON SAN FRANCISCO BAY

BY John G. Denham

On Wednesday 7 November 2007, it started as a short 10 AM radio news item. A tanker hit the bay bridge and some oil was spilled. Just another boating accident. By noon it was reported that the slight contact by a container ship with the “D” tower of the San Francisco Oakland Bay Bridge was more than slight and oil in an unknown amount was spilled. By sunset there were rumors that the oil spill was a major catastrophe. The media scrambled to find information but was unsuccessful. The USCG was not fully aware of the situation and there were no available eye witnesses coming forth Finding available transportation to the scene was near impossible as fog shrouded the bay although incoming ships, ferries and tugs seemed to be moving freely near the bridge.

Lacking official news, the print press, TV and a number of blogs did an excellent job keeping interested persons informed with bits of information pried from various sources and a network of unofficial marine observers e.g., “g Captain.com,” “ flickr.com ” and ”boatingsf.com .” The lack of speculation was evident and although the reports were accurate only professionals and maritime aficionados recognized inconsistencies.

Therefore, this review will summarize what was reported and insert explanations as appropriate, including probable scenarios of what may have transpired. Regardless of facts to be determined later, all the facts may never be known without the truthful statements of those involved.

There will be hearings, investigations, inquiries and probably court trials, both in admiralty and criminal and civil justice; one to find fault, others to make financial awards. The oil spill and its management will be examined by others, ad infinitum, but most disturbing will be the knee-jerk reaction by some to propose solutions before the reason is known.

Time has since passed and we now know the culprit was not a tanker, but the 284.7 meter ( 911 foot) motor (diesel) ship COSCO BUSAN, ex- Hanjin Cairo a foreign flag containership registered in Hong Kong. The captain was Mao Cai Sun of the Peoples Republic of China and the crew was allegedly Chinese. The San Francisco Bar Pilot was John J. Cota a veteran of 27 years as a pilot. The ship was nearly fully loaded with containers and bound for Korea. The China Ocean Shipping Company (COSCO) denied any ownership or managerial responsibility for COSCO BUSAN. The name HANJIN, a Korean shipping company was prominently displayed on the ship’s side but the reported owners are Regal Stone, LTD of Hong Kong and the managing operator was Fleet Management Limited of Hong Kong. [Continue Reading →]

Sailor, Mariners, seafarers and to whom it may concern

by Captain John Denham

The Department of Justice has submitted “information relative to a criminal action ” in U.S. District Court in San Francisco, California; an accusation against a mariner for violating The Clean Water Act and The Migratory Bird Treaty Act. As a criminal case it will be processed not in Admiralty, but in criminal court, where there is a more relaxed and lesser general acceptance for technical qualification and terminology. The urgency in this priority matter may be a limitation in the Statutes or they are not very busy at DOJ. However it should be noted this an accusation for violating two acts, not an allision between a ship and a fixed object. Shaft alley lawyers, don your caps and peruse.

The defendant, JOHN JOSEPH COTA, did negligently (failed to act as a reasonable person might do in similar circumstances) cause (personally did) the discharge of oil in such quantities as may be harmful from a vessel, the M/V Cosco Busan, into and upon the navigable waters of the United States, without a permit. (Can one discharge oil with a permit?) Specifically, on or about November 7, 2007, Defendant Cota, while piloting the M/V Cosco Busan,(it has not been proven that at the time he was directing the navigation and movement of the vessel) caused approximately 58,000 gallons of heavy fuel oil to be discharged from the vessel into San Francisco Bay by acting in a negligent manner,(Supra) that included the following: (a) failing to pilot a collision free course (Supra; made it safely from Oakland to buoy #1); (b) failing to adequately review with the Captain and crew (all of them?) of the M/V Cosco Busan prior to departure the official navigational charts of the proposed course, (only one route out of Oakland) the location of the San Francisco Bay aids to navigation,( not reported as yet; only 18 aids not including bridge) and the operation of the vessel’s navigational equipment; (c) departing port in heavy fog ( term has no professional meaning: although reported as .1 mile) and then failing to proceed at a safe speed (too may variables and special circumstances involved) during the voyage despite limited visibility; (d) then failing to use the vessel’s radar (operational ability unresolved) while making the final approach to the Bay Bridge; (e) failing to use positional fixes during the voyage; and (f) failing to verify the vessel’s position vis-a-vis other established and recognized aids to navigation throughout the voyage. 33CFR164.11 “The owner master or person in charge shall ensure that: (a) the wheelhouse is constantly manned by persons who: (2)Fix the vessel’s position.”

All alleged in violation of Title 33, United States Code, Sections 1319(c)(1)(A) and 1321(b)(3), a Class A misdemeanor. Reviewing the above it is obvious that owners, masters and person in charge of vessels should make all employees aware of the possibility of enforcement by government of these acts, The media has correctly expressed, “they intend to make examples.” The courts, including those selected as jurors , under instruction, will expect a high professional standard of performance of licensed and documented mariners, seafarers and private boaters. It is possible with a proper defense, one may escape penalty, but the experience is devastating and costly.

This article was written by Captain John Denham, a veteran of 66 years maritime experience in seamanship, ship handling, navigation, piloting, and education. He is also author of The Assistant and DD 891.

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The following is the documented federal charges against Cosco Busan pilot John Cota. [Continue Reading →]

The damaged Cosco Busan is seen in Oakland, Calif., on Saturday, Nov. 10, 2007

The Associated Press is reporting that criminal charges were filed today against Capt. John Coda in the Cosco Busan allision with the San Fransisco Bay Bridge, back in November 10, 2007.

Here’s an excerpt:

Capt. John Cota could face up to 18 months in jail and more than $100,000 in fines if convicted of the misdemeanor charges, which include harming migrant birds protected by the government and violating the Clean Water Act. Cota was not taken into custody, according to court papers.

The complete post is HERE.

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This post was written by Richard Rodriguez, Rescue Tug Captain, and US Coast Guard approved instructor for License Training. You can read more of his articles at the BitterEnd of the net.

The following post is written by Fred Fry:

This is from the 13 December 07 Haight’s Maritime Items email newsletter:

San Francisco sues everyone re oil spill – The Office of the City Attorney issued a press release stating that it filed suit under state law against parties allegedly responsible for the November 7 oil spill in San Francisco Bay. In addition to financial compensation, the suit seeks an injunction requiring defendants to implement a plan to assess, monitor, and remediate all damages caused by the spill. Defendants include the owner, operator, manager, pilot, and John Does 1-100. (12/10/07). – Dennis Bryant

You can find a copy of the lawsuit here. (Direct Pdf link here)

He’s not kidding when he says that they are suing everyone. Of note is this comment about 100 John Does who the City of San Francisco also named as defendants:

14. The true names or capacities, whether individual, corporate, associate, or otherwise, of DOE I through DOE 100 are unknown to plaintiffs, who therefore sue such defendants by such fictitious names, and who will amend this complaint to show their true names and capacities when ascertained. Plaintiffs are is informed and believe and thereon allege that each of the defendants designated as a DOE is responsible in some manner for the wrongs herein referred to and thereby proximately caused injuries and damages as alleged herein. – Link (page 7)

Do they really think there are over 100 people responsible for this spill? Who knows, at least the lawyers think that it is possible. You can bet that they will target specific shoreside support staff in addition to members of the crew with that many empty spots to fill. It will be interesting to see who they name, considering the international call not to criminalize seafarers. The pilot so far is the only person named in the suit.

NOTE: As of the time of posting, the City has yet to name any of the 100 John Does. So there are a good number of people out there who are being sued, they just don’t know it yet, for sure.

This was originally posted on my Blog Fred Fry International on 13 December 2007.

San Francisco, CA (28 January): A panel of outside experts formed by the commandant of the Coast Guard to study the response to the Cosco Busan oil spill today released the first of two reports it was chartered to produce. The 120-page ‘Phase I’ report looks at the first two weeks of response operations that unfolded in the wake of the Nov. 7 incident. A second report on the entire cleanup operation is due in several months.

The panel was not tasked with determining the cause of the incident and the report deals only with preparedness and response to the spill. The report contains 59 recommendations related to preparedness, and 79 aimed at improving response operations. These range from relatively simple ideas, such as making oiled wildlife reporting hotlines easier to access, to changes in spill response operations and research on remote sensing technology for detecting spills in low visibility conditions.

Click HERE to continue reading this article at Maritime Executive or view the official Report HERE.

Seattle based Trident Seafood’s 175′ freighter Dolphin with 34,000 gallons of diesel aboard grounded south of Wrangel AK. Dolphin spilled an unknown amount of fuel.

The Juneau Empire story is HERE and video news coverage HERE.

Thanks to BitterEnd for the find!

SF’ist blog has sent us this breaking news item: The Cosco Busan is now departing shipyard in San Francisco.

UPDATES:

Our friends at Jakota and BoatingSF have cleaned up the popular flash based track of Cosco Busan’s fateful voyage.

View the animation HERE

The International Herald Tribune tells us;

The Hong Kong-based owner of a ship that spilled oil in San Francisco Bay has paid the federal government nearly $80 million (€55 million) as bail of sorts while U.S. officials seek a civil judgment, the Justice Department said Friday.

The government asked for and received $79.5 million (€54.8 million) — the full value of the ship — as the maritime equivalent of a release bond, said Andrew Ames, a department spokesman.

The deposit eliminates the government’s threat to seize the vessel, which could have cost taxpayers significant money, Ames said. The threat was part of a lawsuit filed last month by the federal government against the ship’s owner, Regal Stone Ltd.; Capt. John Cota, the pilot; and Regal Stone’s insurance company. Continue Reading…

The San Francisco Chronicle reports:

The Coast Guard has asked Cota to voluntarily deposit his federal merchant marine officer’s license with the service on grounds he is not physically competent to maintain it.

Cota, however, has turned his license in to his lawyer. According to Coast Guard spokesman Dan Dewell, the service has accepted this arrangement with the stipulation that Cota will not sail with the license.

Cota, 60, has 26 years experience as a San Francisco bar pilot. Continue Reading…

Fred Fry brings us news that “Over 100 liable for COSCO BUSAN Oil Spill“;

In addition to financial compensation, the suit seeks an injunction requiring defendants to implement a plan to assess, monitor, and remediate all damages caused by the spill. Defendants include the owner, operator, manager, pilot, and John Does 1-100.

You can find a copy of the suit here. (Direct Pdf link here)

He’s not kidding when he says that they are suing everyone. Of note is this comment about 100 John Does who the City of San Francisco also named as defendants:

The true names or capacities, whether individual, corporate, associate, or otherwise, of DOE I through DOE 100 are unknown to plaintiffs, who therefore sue such defendants by such fictitious names, and who will amend this complaint to show their true names and capacities when ascertained. Continue Reading…

We reported last week the Board Of Pilot’s decision to formally charge Captain Cota for a list of safety related infractions. Today we have received copies of the official accusation;

At about 0600 on Wednesday, 07 November 2007, Captain Cota boarded the M/V COSCO BUSAN at Oakland Berth 56 to act as its pilot for its transit from Berth 56 to sea. The vessel was scheduled to sail at 0630.

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