May

HAZMAT – Africa – Mozambique

By admin

Hello there! If you are new here, you might want to subscribe to the RSS feed for updates on this topic.

EDIS Number: HZ-20100504-25943-MOZ
Date / time: 04/05/2010 03:20:26 [UTC]
Event: HAZMAT
Area: Africa
Country: Mozambique
State/County: Unknow
City: Unknow
Number of Deads: None or unknow
Number of Injured: None or unknow
Damage level: Minor

Description:

The Mozambican authorities have found in the southern province of Inhambane, about 20 miles off the coast of Vilankulo, a small boat laden with 13 containers that the authorities suspect to be radioactive waste. According to the state Radio Mozambique, the authorities said that the barge, baptized "Anchorage", with no crew aboard, may have been abandoned in the Mozambican waters by a mother ship, probably from Singapore. The maritime authorities are currently waiting for the arrival of a tugboat to move the barge with the suspected radioactive material ashore, while it is being be strictly monitored by the Mozambican Navy. A high ranking official from the Inhambane government said that the 13 containers might be loaded with about 300 tons of what is supposed be radioactive waste. Similar incidents have been reported off the coast of Mozambique in the past, which is sought after by criminals who often enter country's waters for illegal fishing, as well for transhipment of cargo most of which suspected to be illegal drugs. Last year, for example, a number of parcels containing drugs were seized floating off the coast of the southern provinces of Gaza and Inhambane, while some suspect individuals, who are believed to be the real owners of the cargo, were seen in the vicinity. Currently, the Mozambican government is negotiating with its cooperation partners, including the Unites States, France and Norway, for the purchase of surveillance equipment to patrol the Mozambican waters. To that end, the Norwegian Secretary of State, Ingrid Fiskaa, pledged recently a sum of 19 million euros earmarked for the Mozambique's fishing sector, including the fight against illegal fishing.