Tallinn, Estonia - A ship whose toxic waste caused the death of six people and made thousands ill in Ivory Coast docked in the Estonian port of Paldiski on Friday morning, officials confirmed.
"The Probo Koala arrived in Paldiski early this morning. People from the Marine Safety Inspectorate have been ordered to visit the ship and check the documentation and purpose of its visit," said Allan Gromov of the Estonian Environment Ministry.
"This is an extraordinary inspection - we're taking a look due to the image of the vessel," he said.
The Probo Koala, a Panamanian-registered tanker, unloaded waste liquid in the Ivorian port of Abidjan in August. The vessel's charterer, Dutch firm Trafigura Beheer BV, states that the liquid was a mixture of water and soda used to flush out its main tanks.
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"The waste disposed of in Abidjan was the residue washings (slops) from the slop tanks of the Probo Koala, the result of washings from gasoline blend stock delivered to the vessel," a press release stated on Thursday.
The slops subsequently found their way onto municipal rubbish dumps, leaking toxic fumes into the city. So far six people have died and almost 9,000 have sought medical attention - a medical crisis which led the Ivorian government to resign last week.
Attention at first focused on the question of how the waste had travelled from the port to the rubbish dumps, rather than on the ship itself. As a result, the Probo Koala put to sea.
However, last week Dutch daily De Volkskrant reported that the ship had tried to unload its slops in Amsterdam, but that the operation had been halted because the slops smelt of rotten eggs, a sign of possible sulphur contamination.
"We can process this, but it costs more," the director of Amsterdam Port Services (APS), T Smit, told De Volkskrant. The fatal gas in Abidjan is thought to have been hydrogen sulphide, which also smells of rotten eggs.
A Trafigura spokesperson said on Friday that the firm is waiting for a full UN analysis of the Abidjan waste, thought to be due later on Friday. However, it rejects any suggestion of improper behaviour.
"The slops (...) were handed over to a certified local Abidjan slops disposal company, Compagnie Tommy, following Trafigura's communication to the authorities of the nature of the slops, and a written request that the material should be safely disposed of (...) with all correct documentation," the press release said.
"These slops were not rejected by any port, including the Port Authorities in Amsterdam. (The unloading process in Amsterdam) was halted as a result of APS' desire to renegotiate contractual terms," it added.
Meanwhile, the ship itself returned from African waters and entered the Baltic Sea. Last Friday it docked in the Latvian oil port of Ventspils to take on cargo.
It left Ventspils on Saturday for the three-hundred-kilometre passage to Paldiski. It has spent the last six days anchored at sea - a normal practice to ensure minimal port fees, a Trafigura spokesperson said. - Sapa-dpa
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