(Clockwise from top left) Merijn Heidema, Eric Peijpers, Richard Ouwehand and Martin Hans Sinke were each handed fines on April 2. - ST
SINGAPORE: Four Dutchmen, who were crew members on Netherlands-flagged dredger Vox Maxima when it struck another vessel and caused the worst oil spill in Singapore in a decade, were each handed fines on Wednesday (April 2).
Merijn Heidema, 26, who was a third engineer at the time of the incident in June 2024, and Eric Peijpers, 56, then a second engineer, were each fined S$40,000.
Richard Ouwehand, 49, who was Vox Maxima’s master, and Martin Hans Sinke, 48, then the vessel’s chief officer and was in charge of its navigational watch, were each fined $20,000.
On March 12, each man pleaded guilty to one charge under the Merchant Shipping Act 1995 and admitted to failing to discharge their duties properly.
Vox Maxima had struck the stationary Singapore-flagged Marine Honour at Pasir Panjang Terminal and around 400 tonnes of fuel were leaked into the sea.
It spread to the coastlines of East Coast Park, Labrador Nature Reserve and Sentosa, and even to the Johor coastline in Kota Tinggi.
In earlier proceedings, Deputy Public Prosecutor Regina Lim told the court that clean-up operations took more than two months.
Marine Honour was still undergoing repairs as of March 12, and the cost of repairs is estimated to exceed $6.6 million.
On the morning of June 14, 2024, the circuit breaker of the outgoing feeder of the high-voltage switchboards to the step-down transformer on the starboard side of the Vox Maxima was opened to allow for maintenance works.
Starboard refers to the right side of a vessel when facing its front, while port refers to the left.
The circuit breaker controlled the flow of electrical power from the main generator to the step-down transformer on the starboard side.
When it was in an open state, no electrical power would be supplied to the equipment connected to the low-voltage switchboards.
The circuit breaker remained open after the maintenance works were completed that day.
Prior to taking over the engineering watch at noon, Peijpers and Heidema did not check the status of the circuit breakers, which would affect the distribution of electrical power on the vessel.
By law, they are required to be satisfied with items, including the electrical power distribution system, before taking over the engineering watch.
During their watch, Peijpers and Heidema prepared the Vox Maxima for its departure from the Western Anchorage to ST Engineering Marine’s Tuas shipyard.
Just after noon, the two men were notified by several other officers that the main engines had to be ready for the voyage by 1.30pm.
The pair then stopped the auxiliary generator and started the main generators, which comprised the starboard generator and a second main generator on the port side.
As the circuit breaker on the starboard side was open, no electrical power from the starboard generator could be supplied to the equipment connected to the low-voltage switchboards, and they were thus powered by the port generator.
While on the way to Tuas shipyard, two of Vox Maxima’s hydraulic pumps that drew power from the low-voltage switchboards were started as part of the planned operations, increasing the load at a circuit breaker on the port side.
This circuit breaker tripped as it was overloaded when the second hydraulic pump was started, leading to a loss of electrical power for all low-voltage equipment, including rudders and controllable pitch propellers.
This led to the loss of steering and propulsion control of the Vox Maxima.
Upon the loss of steering control, both Ouwehand and Sinke were responsible for, among other things, engaging emergency steering, but they failed to do so.
During this time, the Vox Maxima approached a ship, the Super Hero, which managed to alter its course and speed to avoid a collision.
The Super Hero had 21 crew members on board at the time.
A minute later, the Vox Maxima hit the starboard side of the Marine Honour, which suffered damage to at least six water ballast tanks, 10 cargo oil tanks and the slop port tank as a result. - The Straits Times/ANN
