The question being asked in fisheries circles is: what was the fishing vessel Claremont doing when it ran aground?
|||Cape Town - Just what was the tuna fishing vessel Claremont doing at the time it ran aground and broke up just off Robben Island in stormy weather?
That’s the question being asked in fisheries circles about the incident three weeks ago which saw the wooden vessel break up on the rocks on the south-western shores of the island in the early hours.
The NSRI rescued the 12 people aboard, including the skipper who the Cape Argus has been told is a Mr Da Silva.
Police spokesman Captain FC van Wyk confirmed that police had been informed about the incident by the NSRI. Officers had visited the site.
The vessel was a wreck, he said.
A total 45 shucked and three unshucked perlemoen were recovered among the rocks and debris, Van Wyk said.
The shellfish had been booked in at Table Bay Harbour police station and handed over to the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries for storage, he said.
Dive goggles and flippers were found around the wreck site.
Police had neither opened a case docket nor arrested anyone.
The incident was being investigated by the SA Maritime Safety Association (Samsa), Van Wyk added.
Samsa principal officer Captain Gustav Louw confirmed the association had investigated the wrecking to determine the cause and was not taking the issue further.
“The only thing we had to go on was a statement from the skipper who said he had had engine problems and had ended up on the rocks,” he said.
The Claremont was based in Hout Bay and was licensed for tuna fishing using poles, with a crew of 19.
Fisheries sources said the skipper should have completed and posted a “red letter” departure form on leaving the harbour, setting out details of the trip. On leaving the harbour, the vessel should have switched on its compulsory vessel monitoring system so it could be tracked by the operations room of the fisheries department.
If the vessel approached closer than one nautical mile to Robben Island - a restricted area - it should have notified Cape Town Radio, which in turn would have alerted the Robben Island management authority.
When asked whether the Claremont had indeed complied with statutory obligations, all fisheries department spokeswoman Carol Moses would say was that the incident was being investigated.
The Cape Argus was unable to trace Mr Da Silva.
According to the official fisheries department register of tuna-pole fishing rights, the Claremont is operated by Edgemead-based right holder Da Silva Investments, and the contact person is M da Silva.
However, neither the landline nor the cellphone numbers listed in the register are operational, and the e-mail address listed bounces with the message “delivery to the recipient failed permanently”.
john.yeld@inl.co.za
Cape Argus