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Port operator critizised after loss of Tycoon
A report on the "Tycoon"-wreck which blocked Christmas Island's port for months has found the port operator had not properly assessed the risk of leaving a ship moored in deteriorating weather conditions. The Australian Transport Safety Bureau's final report on the sinking of the freighter said the weather around Christmas Island is known to be unpredictable. But it also says the port operator had neither conducted a document risk assessment, nor made adequate contingency plans for worsening conditions. The freighter was a total loss after he crashed onto the cliffs at Flying Fish Cove in Jan 2012 after its mooring lines failed and broke in half in heavy seas. The ATSB said because of the severe consequences of stranding a ship in the inner harbour, the port should have completed a formalised risk assessment which considered whether it was safe for ships to remain at mooring overnight. The main thing that led to the floundering of the "Tycoon" was the giving way of one of the mooring lines as a result of the failure of the shackle. There were planned inspections but they weren't done in a timely way, so it's an important issue and one that has now been fixed.
AMSA works to recover salvage costs
It could take a year to recover millions of dollars spent responding to the shipwreck of the "Tycoon" on Christmas Island. The Australian Maritime Safety Authority authority handled the immediate clean-up and was then forced to salvage the wreck after the ship's owners refused to clear the site. It is now working to recover the $5 million salvage bill as well as clean-up costs, but it will be a long process.
Tycoon removal to take another couple of months
The operation to remove the wreck of the "Tycoon" at the Christmas Island port is continuing, six months after the vessel smashed into rocks. The Federal Government organised the salvage and will take action to recover costs from the owner of the ship. The complex task will take another couple of months as it is weather dependent. Until September most, if not all, of the wreck was expected to be removed and taken away. A 12 tonne guillotine is actually cutting through the steel, and a electromagnet collects the pieces from the seabed.
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