The US Coast Guard last week detained the Hong Kong-flagged container ship Great Success, requiring the vessel to remain at the Port of Longview because of numerous safety violations, the USCG revealed August 2.
Port State
Control officers from Coast Guard Sector Columbia River’s Marine Safety Unit in
Portland, Oregon discovered the discrepancies during routine inspections of the
553-foot bulk carrier vessel in Kalama, Washington on July 30 and Longview on July
31.
The vessel, which
was built in 1998 and is owned by Rich Target Shipping, was loaded with grain
and had been scheduled to depart for Japan prior to its detention.
Most safety
discrepancies were related to fire danger and included excessive oil and oily
water mixture in the bilges, excessive oil in the engine room and oil-saturated
lagging insulation throughout the engine room, the Coast Guard says.
Among the
violations found was an emergency fire pump that was leaking water and flooding
the emergency fire pump room. Also, the condition of the incinerator posed a
significant fire hazard and could not be tested safely due to oil-saturated
lagging insulation on the incinerator and pooling of oil in the immediate
vicinity.
Additionally,
all three generators and the boiler burner had active lube oil leaks, causing
pooling of lube oil beneath the equipment, according to the USCG, and a fire
door within the purifier flat could not be opened from inside the space
creating an unsafe way out for crewmembers.
Despite the
violations, no pollution has been reported in connection with the ship.
As of August
6, the vessel is still at anchor in Longview and is expected to remain there until
the violations have been corrected.
