Coast Guard dispatches six vessels and two aircraft to check oil spill on Mangalore seashore
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After a merchant vessel ran aground off the coast of Ullal, Mangalore, the Coast Guard dispatched six vessels and two aircraft to check marine pollution from the oil spill.
The Lebanon-bound ship was stuck on the coast and has now completely sunk. The vessel came from Tianjin in China.
Foreign vessel MV Princess Miral is damaged and submerged. It reportedly carries 220 tonnes of fuel. It also has 8,000 tonnes of steel coil. Only a minor sheen of oil has been found till now and it is assessed to be from engine bilges and dirty water tanks.
The incident took place on June 21. A 15-member Syrian crew was rescued by the Coast Guard. The crew abandoned the ship after a breach in the hull put it in trouble. The mariner raised a rescue call after the ingress of water. Indian Coast Guard ships 'Vikram' and 'Amartya' braved rough waters and difficult weather conditions for the rescue mission, said a statement from ICG.
Karnataka Coast Guard commander and Deputy Inspector-General S B Venkatesh said in an official statement that six vessels and two Dornier aircraft are being used to monitor, map, and combat the oil spill in the area. Two of the vessels belong to local resource agencies.
The Coast Guard is coordinating with the state administration, pollution control board, New Mangalore Port Trust (NMPT), and Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited (MRPL) to prevent a large-scale oil spill from the sunken vessel. A specialised pollution control vessel, ICGS Samudra Pavak has left Porbandar to take part in the operations and will arrive in Mangalore Saturday morning.
