Two crew members on an oil tanker registered in Singapore have been charged in connection with a collision that left one man on the other vessel dead and another seriously injured.
For the unversed, last year in July, the ship Hafnia Nile, registered in Singapore, collided with the Ceres I, registered in the African island nation of the Democratic Republic of Sao Tome and Principe.
According to media reports at the time, the collision occurred approximately 55 kilometers northeast of Pedra Branca, within Singapore's maritime search and rescue region.
Soosai Antony Vainer, a 35-year-old Indian national, and Wickramage Viraj Amila Shavinda Perera, a 40-year-old Sri Lankan, were the two crew members from the Hafnia Nile who were each charged under the Merchant Shipping Act.
Charge sheets stated that Perera was the officer in charge of the navigational watch on the Hafnia Nile between 5.40 am and 6 am on Jul 19, 2024.
He was accused of failing to maintain situational awareness of the area surrounding the Hafnia Nile, make "a full appraisal of the situation and the risk of dangers to navigation, and ensure that a proper lookout was maintained" in that capacity.
This malfunction caused the ship to collide with the Ceres I, resulting in "serious damage" to both tankers and the death of Sellakkannu Shanmugasundaram, who was on board the Ceres I.
According to the charge sheets, Ge Junfu, who was also on board the Ceres I, sustained severe injuries.
The court documents noted that Vainer was the navigational watch's duty lookout on the Hafnia Nile at the time.
He observed that the Hafnia Nile was "approaching close" to the Ceres I, but did not report this to the officer in charge of the navigational watch, his charge alleged.
Instead, he allegedly failed to maintain a proper lookout and steered the Hafnia Nile without being instructed to do so.
Consequently, the two tankers came into contact.
Following the incident, Malaysia arrested the Ceres I tanker, although early reports claimed the ship had escaped. The Malaysian authorities later clarified that the Ceres I had "drifted away" rather than fled.
The two men are being prosecuted by the Singaporean Maritime and Port Authority.
Both cases were discussed further in the State Courts on Wednesday, July 2, and were postponed until later this month.
Public records show that Perera is being defended by Wong Min Hui and Mato Kotwani of PDLegal, while Vainer is being represented by Andy Yeo of Andy Yeo Chambers.
If convicted, the men can each be jailed for up to two years, fined up to S$50,000, or both.
