Date:15/11/2005 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2005/11/15/stories/2005111512760100.htm

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Expert team to inquire into collapse of berth

Staff Reporter

Q3, Q4 berths of Mattancherry wharf decommissioned after accident

COLLAPSED BERTH: The Q4 berth at the Mattancherry wharf that caved in on Sunday night.

KOCHI: An expert team will conduct an inquiry into the caving in of the Q4 berth of the Mattancherry wharf following heavy rain on Sunday night. The berth caved in after a bulk consignment of common salt was unloaded.

The four-member expert team consists of C. K. Aravindan and S. R. Gandhi of IIT, Chennai; V.G. Koshy, former Chief Engineer of the Cochin Port Trust; and V. Chellapan, former Chief Engineer of the Chennai Port Trust.

N. Ramachandran, Chairman, Cochin Port Trust, said on Monday that the Q4 berth had been decommissioned following the accident. As a precautionary measure, the Q3 berth had also been decommissioned.

About 36,000 tonnes of the bulk cargo, brought from Gujarat for Travancore Cochin Chemicals, was discharged at the port on Sunday evening. About 4,000 tonnes could not be removed from the wharf because of heavy rain. The salt got soaked in the heavy rain and about 160 metres of the 690-metre Q4 berth collapsed soon, he said.

Personnel of the Central Industrial Security Force and the Fire and Rescue Services were soon pressed into service. Senior port officials rushed to the spot to assess the damage. Most of the heavy cargo stacked in adjacent berths has been removed.

Heavy machinery of Cochin Shipyard Ltd (CSL) in the adjacent Q2 berth was removed last night as a precautionary measure. Cochin Port engineers said the Q1 and Q2 berths were safe for commercial operation. The port has 16 cargo handling berths. The decommissioning of the Q4 and Q3 berths is not likely to affect significantly the port's commercial operations, he said.

Mr. Ramachandran said a detailed inquiry would be conducted into the circumstances that led to the incident. The expert team would carry out a study and inspect adjacent berths at the wharf to check whether these had been damaged. The terms of reference of the inquiry team would be worked out soon.

Meanwhile, the port authorities have started working on plans to reconstruct the wharf. The work will be carried out in consultation with the Union Ministry of Shipping. Reconstruction of the wharf will be done in a phased manner. The work will be done in accordance with international standards. The reconstruction of the affected portion of the Q4 berth is estimated to cost Rs.30 crores.