Ship aground in garden near Trondheim, Norway

[ombugge]

A picture from a more “dramatic” angle:

Photo: Jan Langhaug / NTB

The captain of the container ship denies criminal responsibility after the grounding at Byneset

The police have charged the captain of the container ship NCL Salten for grounding in the Trondheimsfjord on May 22. He denies any criminal responsibility.

The captain was questioned on Monday evening and has been charged. The man, in his 60s, has citizenship from a European country, writes Adresseavisen .
– Based on the explanations of those questioned and the evidence in the case, the police believe that it can be established that the vessel’s bridge guard alarm was not activated, police attorney Kjetil Bruland Sørensen tells Adresseavisen.

The police believe that the captain has breached his responsibility to ensure safe navigation when the alarm was not activated, and that this is a violation of the Ship Safety Act.

Defense attorney Torbjørn Kolås Sognefest says that the captain denies any criminal responsibility and that he is cooperating with the police to clarify the case as best as possible.
– During the grounding, the accused was not on duty, and he has no objective responsibility for any technical system on the ship at any time. He therefore does not plead guilty to the charges, says Sognefest.
He says the captain is relieved that the incident did not have more serious consequences, either for people or the environment.

Two charged

The second officer on board has also been charged after the grounding. He was on duty alone and has explained that he fell asleep before the ship ran aground. He has explained to the police that he woke up when the ship ran aground, and that no alarm ever sounded.

Source: Kapteinen på konteinerskipet nekter straffskyld etter grunnstøtingen på Byneset - smp.no

PS> The picture shows how close the ship was from hitting solid rock, not a sloping gravel beach.