THE owner of the sunken Marine Vessel (MV) J. HARMS has failed to respond to a letter from the Maritime Authority Solomon Islands to remove the vessel from the Noro Lagoon in Western Province.
The vessel sunk on Monday.
MV J. HARMS was formerly the MV Kosco. The name change came about due to its changed ownership after being purchased.
SIMA Director, Thierry Nervale, told Solomon Star in an interview that the owner of J. HARMS was not responsive to their official letter addressed to him.
Mr Nervale did not disclose the name of the owner of the ship in the interview.
“We have addressed an official letter to the ship owner to inform him about the responsibilities and actions he must take to cease any danger to persons and the environment.
“Unfortunately, the ship owner is not responsive.”
Mr Nervale said SIMA is coordinating its response to the situation.
“We have activated our Marine Pollution Advisory Committee to activate the NATPLAN and take further actions.”
He said they are to deploy an investigation and assessment team to the sunken boat site this morning.
The team would comprise two SIMA officers and one Ministry of Environment Climate Change and Disaster Management (MECDM) Environment Division officer.
By LACHLAN EDDIE
Solomon Star, Honiara
