Dense fog causes collisions in Hai Phong waterways
Dense fog causes collisions in Hai Phong waterways
During the last three weeks, thousands of goods reportedly sunk in water after ships entering the Hai Phong Port in the coastal Hai Phong City collided due to dense fog.
Head of Hai Phong Port Authority Bui Van Minh cautioned about the dangers of dense fog to waterway traffic at the port area as at least three collisions had been recently reported there.
Early yesterday morning, Pacific Express, a container ship registered in Viet Nam, which was en route from central Da Nang City to Hai Phong, with a capacity of over 11,000 tonnes collided with a fishing boat offshore about 7.5 nautical miles away from the city's Hon Dau Island due to dense fog conditions.
The fishing boat, with seven crew members on board, sunk after the collision.
The Hai Phong Port Authority gave timely instructions to the Pacific Express ship to search and rescue the crew members of the boat.
Early this week, on Tuesday, the cargo ship ND2784, with four crew members on board and 1,118 tonnes of clinker, sank after it was hit by the Sai Gon Princess ship at the Bach Dang River estuary.
The cargo ship was sailing from the northern Ninh Binh Port to Quang Ninh, while the Sai Gon Princess ship which was carrying 6,300 tonnes of maize was due to enter the Hai Phong Port. The four crew members aboard were saved by the local border guards.
Dense fog that limited vision was reported to be the cause of the accident.
Late last month, Phu Son 26, a ship owned by the local Phu Son Marine Transportation Ltd Company, with 700 tonnes of iron and 2,200 tonnes of tapioca, reportedly sank after being hit by another ship due to the same reason. The loss is estimated to be over VND50 billion (US$2.37 million).
Minh noted that sometimes, the fog was so dense that it restricted vision to just few tens of metres.
"The port authority and other relevant agencies have taken measures to instruct waterway vehicles venturing in the area," he remarked.
Moreover, they also urged the ship owners to prevent any possible oil spills from the wrecked ships and salvage the ships.
vietnamnews
