Asia/Pacific News
Maersk "Fuel-Flow Failure" Cause April Incident
A "fuel-flow failure" on a Maersk Line vessel nearly led it to hit the edge of a channel in New Zealand's Otago Harbour in an April incident that has just come to light, industry news site Tradewinds reports.
The 3,078 twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) Maersk Batur reportedly had "possible contact" with sand at the channel's edge.
The fuel-flow issue led the vessel's master to drop anchor and restart the engine, which took only a "short time," according to Maersk New Zealand operations manager Stuart Jennings.
The vessel was towed into deeper water by two tugs.
Green Party MP Gareth Hughes brought the incident up as part of a criticism of the government for allegedly playing down shipping incidents after the grounding of the containership Rena and the subsequent oil spill on Astrolabe Reef, the Otago Daily Times reports.
The cleanup operation resulting from the 2011 wreck of the Rena cost taxpayers $50 millionaccording to one 2012 estimate.
