Mol Discloses Mauritius Accident's Likely Cause


MOL discloses Mauritius accident's likely cause

Japanese shipping firm Mitsui O.S.K. Lines has disclosed the possible causes of an accident that led to a massive oil leak off Mauritius.

The company announced on Friday its findings on the July 25 accident involving the bulk carrier Wakashio, which it had chartered. The oil leak has caused serious environmental pollution in the Indian Ocean nation.

A statement says the vessel "reduced its distance from the coast to 2 nautical miles, to enter an area within the communication range of mobile phones" on the day the vessel ran aground.

The statement also says the crew "used a nautical chart without sufficient scale to confirm the accurate distance from the coast and water depth," and a crewmember failed to keep watch, both visually and by radar.

Mitsui O.S.K. Lines also announced that it will invest 500 million yen, or roughly 5 million dollars, to implement preventive measures.

The measures include training crewmembers to operate electronic nautical charts and stepping up support from ground.

The company pledged that it will work to establish a system to further increase safety levels.