Cabo Star set to return next weekend

Tobago Correspondent

Following an inspection by a Panamanian certification society inspector after a fire on board the Cabo Star on August 20, the vessel is expected to return to service next week.

The Inter-Island Transport Service confirmed the fire happened inside the auxiliary engine room around 10 am. No one was injured and the crew quickly contained the fire.

The inspector arrived in the country on Wednesday and started an assessment of the situation the following day.

Yesterday, Port Authority of Trinidad and Tobago (PATT) chairman Lyle Alexander said more sailings will be added in the coming days to transport additional goods to Tobago ahead of the Cabo Star’s return.

While he couldn’t provide details about the cause of the fire, he said things are “looking good as circumstances permit.”

He said the authority is doing everything in its power to address any disruptions in the seabridge caused by the cargo vessel’s absence.

“The vessel owner has indicated that we should have the vessel back on stream by next weekend— the weekend coming. We are going to add additional sailings to make up for the shortfall,” Alexander said.

“These are risks associated with maritime transport. Working with the available resources, we have put the pedal to the metal, doing the very best we can. There are some resources that could make the job more efficient but in their absence, we continue to do the best we can with what we have. Our responsibility is to the customers, and we fully recognise what that responsibility is, doing everything we can to uphold it.”

The latest fire happened just three days before the anniversary of the August 23, 2023 fire in the same compartment of the vessel while out at sea. It took three weeks before the vessel could return to service then.

In an interview weeks before the latest fire, Alexander reflected on the sleepless nights, the challenges of last year’s aftermath, and the lessons learnt from the 2023 crisis.

He revealed the vessel dodged a bullet then.

“We were extremely lucky, given the location of the vessel and where this thing happened and the vehicles that were onboard and what could have happened.”

Although spared from the true impact of last year’s fire, Alexander said the loses were still far too great. He said the economic losses were, “more than you probably think.”

“There are cost associated with the vessel itself and the unseen impact cost.”

He also shared the cause behind 2023’s fire.

He said, “I can simply say some flammable material contacted a hot surface and ignited and we had an ignition within the confined space. The fire was dealt with fairly quickly.”

But there was nothing in PATT’s investigation which suggested sabotage or negligence, he noted.

Although the fire happened inside the engine room, almost all the cables in vessel had to be replaced by the owners.

Still, looking back Alexander gave PATT a good rating on response.

“The idea then was we just had to be transparent and let people know exactly what the circumstances were, what we were doing, what we planned to and what we are going to do about it.”

The incident has also encouraged the authority to prepare better.

“If we think we are going to go beyond a week … Do we have an agreement with somebody who can find us a vessel within that time? Even though you have that agreement, that particular vessel would not be sitting down waiting to respond to this, how long would it take to be here. Those are the kinds of things that need to be considered.”

Meanwhile, the Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce’s Tobago Division chairman, Curtis Williams, gave the organisation a passing grade for managing the 2023 ordeal.

But, he warned against delays in securing the promised custom-built cargo vessel.

“Don’t wait until something happens and then we say we thought you said you were going for a new vessel, what happened to the new vessel,” Williams said.

Williams also defended the chamber’s decision to declare a food crisis days into the incident, saying the declaration was never meant to cause panic.

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