Sète (South France)-Colombo (Sri Lanka): the mad escape of the Odeep One
July 30, 2021. 12 h
The dilapidated vessel targeted by the Paris Memorandum of Understanding on Port State Control escaped from Sète on Friday, July 23, with the complicity of the port. The Odeep One caused in her flight 2 oil pollutions in the port basins and at the exit of the channel. The Ship Safety Centre (SSC) based in Sète was not informed of this departure. Yesterday, July 29, the Odeep One has refuelled in Maltese territorial waters and is now heading for Colombo (Sri Lanka). Close monitoring of the Odeep One‘s trajectory between Sète and Malta by Robin des Bois and other specialists has shown that she is facing mechanical problems. Her average speed is 5 to 6 knots with phases at one or 2 knots.
Sète in West Africa
Robin des Bois (Robin Hood) suggests that the port of Sète along the Mediterranean Sea be by special derogation incorporated into the Abuja MoU (Memorandum of Understanding), a West African maritime agreement reputed to be non-existent in the quality control of ships calling in the ports of Abidjan, Lomé, Lagos among others.
Indeed the port of Sète and his maritime safety centre are getting ready in the coming days to let the Paris, a Spanish tug, leave Sète towing the Rio Tagus spoiled by rust and water ingress. She is berthed at Sète for 8 years.