Salvage of MT Meherjan finally postponed

Salvage ships, sent to rescue sunken oil tanker MT Meherjan from a depth of 90 feet in the Meghna River, left the spot yesterday evening as Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority suspended the operation until the overall weather condition improves.Photo: STAR

Authorities yesterday suspended the operation to salvage oil tanker MT Meherjan that capsized with about 700 tonnes of fuel following a collision with cargo vessel MV Fazlul Huq-3 at Kaliganj-Gobindapur point of the Meghna River on July 25 night.
"We have postponed the salvage activities till improvement of the overall weather condition including river current, and removal of other obstacles," said AKM Arif Uddin, deputy secretary (Administration) of BIWTA, also coordinator of the salvage operation titled 'Operation Meher'.
Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) salvage vessels Hamza and Rustam, navy ship BNS Soikat and all other vessels and the teams engaged in salvage operation left the spot this evening," he said yesterday.
Earlier on Thursday, the authorities announced a 72-hour 'Operation Meher' following a joint meeting of the officials of navy, coastguard, and BIWTA, and representatives of the oil tanker and others concerned on BIWTA ship Shandhani.
But repeated failure in starting the rescue attempt has led to postponement ofa the operation, Arif Uddin said, adding that members of the salvage team termed several factors including inclement weather, spread of huge fishing nets, heavy siltation on the sunken tanker and lack of adequate logistics as hindrance to the operation.
BIWTA Deputy Director Alamgir Kabir, also the officer in charge of Barisal port, said both capsized oil tanker MT Meherjan and detained cargo vessel MV Fazlul Huq-3 were plying without permission to navigate at night.
Bellal Hossain, engineer of Polar Shipping Company, owner of capsized MT Meherjan, said, "So far only the fuel oil from the tanker's engine has spilled over. Eleven days into the sinking of the tanker, its fuel containers are still safe. But I do not know how long they will sustain the water pressure under 85-90 feet, amid the strong current."
"Suspension of the salvage operation may lead to an environmental disaster in a vast area as the possibility of massive oil spill is increasing in the prevailing situation. Besides, huge siltation may create obstacle on the way of safe navigation on the busy route," said advocate Suvash Chandra Biprobedanti, coordinator of Barisal Environmental Network.
The sinking of MT Meherjan and failure to rescue it in eleven days show lack of safety preparedness for carrying hazardous materials on river routes in the country and lack of awareness among vessel owners and authorities about related rules, said Suvash Chandra, also former coordinator of Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers Association.