USCG detains tanker Overseas Jademar

FEBRUARY 11, 2015  — Coast Guard personnel detained the tanker Overseas Jademar in Port Angeles, WA, Monday.

OSG shows the ship in its fleet listings as a 100% owned Panamax vessel. The Equasis data base shows its ship manager as Cape Tankers, Inc., Ft Lauderdale, FL, and the ISM Manager as V Ships UK Ltd., Glasgow/

Port State Control officers, from Coast Guard Sector Puget Sound, discovered several significant safety violations during a port state control exam of the Marshall Island-flagged tanker, which will remain detained in Sector Puget Sound’s Captain of the Port zone until the safety violations are corrected.

The deficiencies found onboard included non-functioning distress signaling equipment and fire safety systems.

The electronic position indicating radio beaconwas found non-functional.

After examining multiple fire hose stations, it was discovered that many gaskets between the hoses and nozzles had deteriorated, limiting the crew’s ability to combat any possible fires.The PSC officers also discovered fire doors that did not automatically close, which when functioning properly, would help contain flames and smoke in the event of a fire and allow the crew more time to combat the fire or abandon ship.

“This case illustrates the importance of the Port State Control program to hold foreign flagged vessel to international safety standards and ensure the safety of life at sea,” said Cmdr. Matt Edwards, Sector Puget Sound prevention department head. “We are continuing to monitor the Overseas Jademar and work with the crew and Marshall Islands representatives to correct these deficiencies.”

The Overseas Jademar was en route from Malaysia to Anacortes, WA, to offload cargo at the time of the exam.