Pinoy captain, ship officer go to jail for New Zealand marine disaster

A Filipino captain and navigation officer of a cargo ship that ran aground off New Zealand and triggered that country's worst maritime disaster last October were sentenced to seven months' jail terms Friday. Captain Mauro Balomaga, 44, and navigation officer Leonil Relon, 37, were sentenced in the Tauranga District Court in New Zealand's North Island, the Sydney Morning Herald reported. The ship crashed into a reef and spilled fuel, killing wildlife and damaging the coastal environment. Filipino residents of New Zealand reported racial comments aimed at them after the incident.

Altering ship documents Balomaga and Relon, whose names were publicly revealed Friday, also admitted another charge laid under the Resource Management Act relating to discharging harmful substances from cargo ship 'Rena.' The report said the two pleaded guilty to charges under the Maritime Transport Act for operating a vessel in a manner causing unnecessary danger or risk. Also, they pleaded guilty to willfully attempting to pervert the course of justice by altering the ship's documents after it grounded in the early hours of October 5. The report said the heaviest penalty is two years in prison and a $NZ300,000 ($A230,000) fine. Both were charged after the cargo ship struck Astrolabe Reef in October last year. The ship's bow is still stuck on the reef while the stern section has sunk. An interim report into the grounding showed the crew took shortcuts and hit the reef while traveling at 17 knots. Some 360 tonnes of heavy fuel oil spilled into the sea, washing up on local beaches and killing wildlife. Crew members are still cleaning debris from the wreck, which broke apart in January. Meanwhile, the ship's owner, Greece-based Daina Shipping, has also been charged with discharging harmful substances from ships and was due in court Friday. Too light? A separate report on "3news New Zealand" said Judge Robert Wolff noted some may think the sentence is too light. But he took into account the fact both men have already been vilified in the community, plus they will be serving their sentences away from home. “It would be a mistake not to recognize that as foreign nationals that whatever sentence you serve here would be harder than on any resident in this country to serve,” Wolff was quoted as saying. Recordings from the black box of the "Rena" showed the captain instructed the engine room crew to increase speed just minutes before the ship hit the Astrolabe Reef. Both defendants had been heavily criticized by Crown lawyers for their incompetence and for deliberately trying to deceive investigators. Balomaga was made to surrender his passport six months ago. Crown prosecutor Rob Ronayne described their conduct as "bordering on reckless." “The navigation leading to the grounding was incompetent and designed to get the vessel to the pilot station as quickly as possible... to avoid missing the 3 a.m. deadline," he said. Investigation also showed that when the reef appeared on the ship's radar 15 minutes before the Rena hit, Balomaga assumed the rocks were either radar clutter or a small vessel. “At this stage there was sufficient time to make an effective alteration of course and avoid the reef,” Mr. Ronayne said. After it hit the rocks, the Crown said the captain and navigational officer tried to cover up their mistakes, changing the GPS logbook, charts and the passage plan. Cleanup Hundreds of tons of oil spilled into the water, along with more than 280 containers. The cleanup so far has cost $37 million. But a representative of East Coast iwi Colin Reeder told the court relaxed shipping rules were just as much the culprit. "We accept that it was human error and that we forgive them. They need to move on with their lives just as the rest of us have to," Reeder said. — LBG, GMA News