SAILED WITHOUT PILOT

Press, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 25248, 29 July 1947, Page 7

SAILED WITHOUT PILOT

DUTCH SHIP LEAVES MELBOURNE (Rec. 7 p.m.) MELBOURNE, July 28. The Dutch freighter Tjibesar slipped away from Melbourne only partlywaded and without waiting for a pilot. The captain applied for a pilot, but when one arrived he found the vessel well out in Port Phillip Bay. The Tjibesar negotiated unaided the tricky channel at The Rip, which is considered a task for a pilot experienced in local conditions. The Victorian Marine Board may prosecute the Dutch master, as it is an offence to take a vessel to sea without a pilot.

A report on the departure of the Tjibesar has been called for by the Harbour Trust Commissioners, but the chairman of the commixsioners, Mr A. B. Mackenzie, said to-day that because of the unusual facts it was unlikely any action would be taken against the captain, the owners, or the agents. The Dutch freighter Grootekerk, which is still anchored at the Pile light in Moreton Bay, may have to return to her home port carrying 400 tons of cargo consigned to Brisbane. The decision on whether the ship will be permitted to unload depends on a ruling by the waterside workers’ executive in Sydney, but there are indications that the Brisbane watersi lers favour the unloading of the cargo.