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Ship’s master prosecuted for being drunk on bulk carrier

A ship’s captain found drunk on the bridge of a bulk carrier has been fined $3000, and may face serious economic impacts. Pramod Kumar, 37, pleaded guilty to attempting to perform designated duties while over the limit. Tauranga police breath-tested him on Sunday, when he gave a reading of 1229 micrograms of alcohol per litre of breath, almost five times the legal limit of 250mg/l. His ship, the African Harrier, arrived at the Port of Tauranga about 2am on Friday, after a 47-day voyage, to unload bagged fertiliser. Kumar left the ship on Saturday and was called back on Sunday because loading finished early, Sunlive reported. On the bridge of the 37,000-tonne ship, the pilot noticed Kumar was drunk and called Maritime New Zealand, which called the police. Kumar’s lawyer Nicholas Dutch said the ship was still alongside the wharf at the time, and the captain of the type of ship involved did not drive it. “The pilot would have steered the ship out of Tauranga harbour, then the first or second officer would have taken over,” he said. But Kumar was legally in charge of the ship by being on the bridge. He “should have gone to bed and not gone anywhere near the bridge”, Dutch said. Kumar had been a captain for five years. Being given a new ship such as the African Harrier as a command was an indication of his standing with his employers. He was being flown back to Mumbai tonight where he faced consequences that could have serious economic effects. Judge Robert Wolff said the ship was still tied up and others were able to undertake Kumar’s duties, so there was no real or appreciable risk. He fined Kumar $3000, plus $130 court costs. Ad Feedback Maritime NZ said Kumar was the first person to be charged since a law change in October 2013.

Ship master five times over alcohol limit

The ship master in charge of a 37,000 tonne fertiliser carrier ship has been fined $3000 for operating the ship while almost five times the permitted alcohol limit. Parmod Kumar, 36, pleaded guilty to a charge of operating a ship with an excess breath alcohol when he appeared in Tauranga District Court today. On March 22 this year, Kumar breached the Maritime Transport Act, by being a master of the carrier ship African Harrier while he attempted to perform "designated safety" duties, while his breath alcohol exceeded 250 micrograms. When Kumar was breath tested by police while the ship was docked at the Port of Tauranga he was found to have an alcohol reading of 1229 micrograms of alcohol per litre of breath.