Baltimore bridge collapse

[tigerman]

A few grabs from an ABC article about the shipping company involved in the bridge disaster.

"Tax havens and worker exploitation: Baltimore bridge disaster gives glimpse into 'murky world' of shipping"​

• "In short: A shipping company at the centre of the Baltimore disaster had another vessel banned from Australian ports in 2021 for worker exploitation.
• The Australian Maritime Safety Regulator found the ship's operator had unlawfully underpaid workers and kept them on board too long.
• The Dali is owned by a company in secretive tax haven, the British Virgin Islands."

"The owners of the ship at the centre of the Baltimore bridge disaster in the US had another vessel banned from Australian ports over unlawful exploitation of workers.

The Dali, a 300-metre container ship which accidentally destroyed a bridge, causing the presumed deaths of six people and blocking a major US trade route, is owned via a secretive tax haven company in the British Virgin Islands called Grace Ocean Investment Limited.

Another ship that belonged to the company was slapped with a six-month ban in 2021 for what the Australian Maritime Safety Authority said were "serious and shameful breaches" of maritime labour laws.

The operator of the Western Callao was forced to hand over about $40,000 in unpaid wages to 13 seafarers."

AMSA detained the same ship at Port Kembla in New South Wales in July 2020, finding the operator had unlawfully kept eight seafarers on board for more than 11 months.

Another of the company's ships, the Furness Southern Cross, had also unlawfully kept 10 seafarers on board for more than 14 months."

Tax havens and worker exploitation behind shipping company in Baltimore disaster

The chequered record of the ship's owner in the Baltimore bridge tragedy offers a glimpse of the "murky world" of tax havens and worker exploitation in global shipping.

www.abc.net.au

 

[DavidSSS]

Not that I’m any sort of expert or authority on maritime port operations. But in Hobart, large vessels are not permitted to pass through under the bridge without two accompanying tugs. Part of extra precautionary measures taken in the aftermath of the 1975 Tasman Bridge incident, that still remain in place. Obviously to prevent any boat going off course, whether that be through human error or mechanical failure.

Yep, and that is dismissed as "red tape" until . . . something goes wrong.

Red tape is necessary when the stakes are this high, people lost their lives. It is a bit like how you must have a pilot to enter Port Phillip Bay, necessary because it is a dangerous manoeuvre.

DS

 

[Sintiger]

A few grabs from an ABC article about the shipping company involved in the bridge disaster.

"Tax havens and worker exploitation: Baltimore bridge disaster gives glimpse into 'murky world' of shipping"​

• "In short: A shipping company at the centre of the Baltimore disaster had another vessel banned from Australian ports in 2021 for worker exploitation.
• The Australian Maritime Safety Regulator found the ship's operator had unlawfully underpaid workers and kept them on board too long.
• The Dali is owned by a company in secretive tax haven, the British Virgin Islands."

"The owners of the ship at the centre of the Baltimore bridge disaster in the US had another vessel banned from Australian ports over unlawful exploitation of workers.

The Dali, a 300-metre container ship which accidentally destroyed a bridge, causing the presumed deaths of six people and blocking a major US trade route, is owned via a secretive tax haven company in the British Virgin Islands called Grace Ocean Investment Limited.

Another ship that belonged to the company was slapped with a six-month ban in 2021 for what the Australian Maritime Safety Authority said were "serious and shameful breaches" of maritime labour laws.

The operator of the Western Callao was forced to hand over about $40,000 in unpaid wages to 13 seafarers."

AMSA detained the same ship at Port Kembla in New South Wales in July 2020, finding the operator had unlawfully kept eight seafarers on board for more than 11 months.

Another of the company's ships, the Furness Southern Cross, had also unlawfully kept 10 seafarers on board for more than 14 months."

Tax havens and worker exploitation behind shipping company in Baltimore disaster

The chequered record of the ship's owner in the Baltimore bridge tragedy offers a glimpse of the "murky world" of tax havens and worker exploitation in global shipping.

www.abc.net.au

Some of the "flags" that these ships sail under are pretty crazy. The top 10 countries who register shipping are Panama, Liberia, Marshall Islands, Hong Kong, Bahamas, Singapore, Greece, Malta, China and Cyprus.

Panama and Liberia in particular are just about avoiding labour laws and tax laws

 

[Panthera Tigris]

Yep, and that is dismissed as "red tape" until . . . something goes wrong.

Red tape is necessary when the stakes are this high, people lost their lives. It is a bit like how you must have a pilot to enter Port Phillip Bay, necessary because it is a dangerous manoeuvre.

DS

That’s a good point, pilots also required in the Derwent, in addition to the accompanying tugs.

So three protection measures:
1) Accompanying tugs
2) Pilots
3) Traffic stopped for passing ships

Like I said previously, I have heard it suggested that perhaps point 3 is overkill (or put another way, a bit too much ‘red tape’) given protection measures 1) and 2) are in place AND the main channel pylons are designed to withstand a collision from a vessel. But it is what it is. And ships don’t pass frequently enough to make it an enormous disruption. Not from my experience and observations. Others might have a different perception than I though.

 

[tigerman]

Some of the "flags" that these ships sail under are pretty crazy. The top 10 countries who register shipping are Panama, Liberia, Marshall Islands, Hong Kong, Bahamas, Singapore, Greece, Malta, China and Cyprus.

Panama and Liberia in particular are just about avoiding labour laws and tax laws

It makes a good case for unions.

 

[Legends of 2017]

One alt-right podcaster claimed that you need "the best people" to build structures like this in a bizarre attempt to link it to affirmative action policies. Even though the bridge was built from 1968-1977 and even if all the civil engineers were good white protestant folk having a *smile*-off big ship ram into a pylon probably won't be good

Well then, Trump has said he only knows and hires the best people. So he’s the man for the job. I’m sure once all the best people he knows have finished their prison sentences, they’ll be looking for work

 

[Sintiger]

It makes a good case for unions.

In theory but very hard for a union to have any influence on what happens on a Liberian registered ship ( as an example).

It’s a big issue. Shipping is rife with this sort of practice.

 

[Panthera Tigris]

There is a theory circulating out of Port of Baltimore staff that a contaminated batch of fuel (I assume they are meaning supplied to the Dali at the Port of Baltimore) may have caused the engine failure. At least that’s what I heard reported on the news.

 

[TigerMasochist]

There is a theory circulating out of Port of Baltimore staff that a contaminated batch of fuel (I assume they are meaning supplied to the Dali at the Port of Baltimore) may have caused the engine failure. At least that’s what I heard reported on the news.

Missed tonight's news but there was earlier mention of the ship carrying containers of some sort of hazmat stuff that may perhaps possibly have been breached by the bridge landing on the ship's cargo.
Musta been some serious dodgy fuel if the filters couldn't clean it up considering the ship was not that long off the dock.

 

[MD Jazz]

Wonder if they will bring in this ex senator given his experience.

Is that TM?

 

[MD Jazz]

Ahh, so the mechanic is gunna be the one who gets arse reamed this time. Unfortunate fact of life, that nothing is ever perfect n sometimes the *smile* just hits the fan no matter what you try n do. Shocking nightmare for all who are somehow involved in any aspect of this incident, can only be thankful that it happened in the middle of the night and minimal people were harmed rather than it happening in the peak of day where it could have been hundreds of people.

U really can write some rootin tootin garbage TM.

 

[DavidSSS]

I read on another forum that the maximum capacity of a container ship when the bridge was built in the 1970s was less than a third of what it is now. Much bigger ships these days. Mind you, unlikely to make that much difference given that any large ship hitting a bridge like that is likely to be catastrophic.

Horrible accident, but once a ship that size loses control, and there is some word that the fuel it loaded was contaminated, there isn't much that is going to stop it.

DS

 

[TigerMasochist]

U really can write some rootin tootin garbage TM.

Geez man. What the *smile* did I do now?