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Marine Survey Office was not justified in issuing a detention order in 2015

The Marine Survey Office was not justified in issuing a detention order for the "Cielo di Monaco" which was damaged while it was berthing in Greenore port, County Louth, the High Court has ruled. The vessel entered Greenore on Sep 27, 2015, to discharge cargo. It was piloted in, as pilotage is compulsory in the privately-owned Greenore. While dredging had been carried out at the port to provide a deep-water berth, it transpired no dredging had occurred in the inner area of the berth where the bulbous bow of the "Cielo di Monaco berthed". The next morning, the crew noticed an ingress of water and it was established there were cracks in the steel plating of the vessel from it having grounded in the lowering tide. The Master of the vessel notified a number of bodies and organisations about the damage, including the Marine Casualty Investigation Board. The Circuit Court had previously ruled the Marine Survey Office of the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport, was not justified in detaining the vessel which was not a clear hazard to safety, health or the environment. The High Court's Mr Justice Denis McDonald agreed and refused an appeal against that decision by the Marine Survey Office (MSO). The MSO also learned of it and an inspector on behalf of the MSO boarded the ship with a notice of detention of Sep 29. The MSO inspector considered there was an immediate and serious threat to the safety of the ship and to the marine environment because of two splits in the hull plating. Repairs were carried out and completed on Oct 7 and the detention order was lifted ton Oct 9. On Oct 8 the owners, DSN, had appealed to the Circuit Court claiming the detention order was unnecessary and disproportionate. It also said the MSO failed to ensure the interference with the vessel's movement was kept to a minimum, in particular, the fact the order was not lifted until Oct 9 caused consequential financial loss to the owners. After the Circuit Court decision, the MSO appealed to the High Court in relation to specific points of law which DSN opposed. Mr. Justice McDonald, in his judgment, said the nub of the decision of the Circuit Court was that there was no clear hazard to safety health or the environment. There was evidence to support that finding. He did not find any basis to interfere with the Circuit Court decision and refused the appeal.

Poor safety procedures raised in interim report on Greenore bulker incident

Poor mooring configuration and adherence to safety procedures have been identified as main factors in the interim report on an incident involving a ‘handy size’ bulker at Greenore Port last year. According to Afloat.ie, the MV Cielo di Monaco) was detained at the north Louth port by Irish authorities on September 28th 2015 under the Paris MoU as a safety measure, with suspected damage to its 180m-long hull.Further investigation of the vessel found an ingress of water in the forepeak blast tank that caused it to go aground forward, with subsequent diver inspection revealing damage to the shell plating and frames, according to the interim report from the Marine Casualty Investigation Board (MCIB). Report here: http://www.mcib.ie/reports.7.html?r=222

Tanker detained in Greenore

The "Cielo di Monaco" was remaining under detention in Greenore. The bulker had arrived from Sheerness and was detained by Irish authorities on Sep 30, 2015. It was understood the vessel may have damage to hull.According to the Paris MoU, the bulker was listed as detained by the organisation that aims to eliminate the operation of sub-standard ships though a harmonized system of port state control. Ireland is a member state of Paris MoU and carried out the detention of the bulker managed by d'Amico Dry, a subsidiary of the Italian owned d'Amico group.