Coast Guard detains Panamax bulker for safety violations

APRIL 26, 2015 — The U.S. Coast Guard detained the 72,493 dwt Marshall Islands flag Panamax bulker Kind Seas, after significant safety violations were found during a port state control inspection in Kalama, WA, Friday.

Vessel inspectors from the Coast Guard Marine Safety Unit in Portland discovered the discrepancies during a routine inspection of the vessel, which was built in 1999 and is managed by Allseas Marine SA of Athens, Greece, and registered to Fairplay Maritime Ltd.

According to the Coast Guard, safety violations were related to a complete failure of the emergency generator, which provides power to emergency equipment including the emergency firefighting pump system. Other discrepancies include deficient structural fire boundary doors designed to prevent the spread of a fire, inoperable bilge pumps critical to removing excess water and waste oil accumulation in engine compartments, and inoperable life saving communication equipment.

“Shipboard fires pose severe risk to vessel crews, the vessel, and the port,” said Capt. Patrick Ropp, commanding officer and officer in charge of marine inspection at MSU Portland. “The deficiencies were determined to pose significant risk to the vessel’s crew and the marine environment indicating that the vessel is unfit to proceed to sea.”

Coast Guard vessel inspectors are working with the Kind Seas’ flag state and ClassNK (Nippon Kaiji Kyokai), the vessel’s classification society, and the vessel’s crew, owner, and managing company to make essential repairs.

The Kind Seas had loaded corn and wheat in Kalama and will depart for Japan after the safety violations have been corrected.