London - The Sea Empress oil spill in the port of Milford Haven, last year, was caused by inadequate training of pilots, according to an official accident report published yesterday. The Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB), concluded that the 147,000 tonne Liberian-registered tanker which ran aground in the Welsh port last February spilled nearly 72,000 tonnes of oil into the sea because of pilot error as it was being guided along the coast.
About 200 km of the west Wales coastline was devastated by the oil spill and the clean-up operation has cost £10 million to date, according to the MAIB.
Highly critical of the way the incident was handled, the MAIB report said the standards of training and examination of pilots at Milford Haven were "unsatisfactory and in need of improvement". The "confrontational relationship" between the Port Authority and the pilot, it said, could not be "conducive to the safe operation of the port", and this had contributed to the seriousness of the accident.
The report singled out Mr John Pearn, the pilot who guided the Sea Empress into Milford Haven, for failing to take appropriate action to keep the tanker in the deepest part of the port.
His error was due, in part, to "inadequate training and experience in the pilotage of large tankers". However, the report also went on to criticise the salvage operation which it said was `'ill-equipped" and led to the tanker going aground for a second time.
Earlier, the Environment Agency announced that it had served summonses on the Milford Haven Port Authority and on the port's harbour master, Mr Mark Andrews. Both will face charges of endangering the marine and coastal environment and posing a danger to public safety.
Mr Pearn will not face criminal charges. He was found guilty of incompetence by the Milford Haven Port Authority last year, but after an appeal he resumed working with large tankers.
PA adds: The Environment, Transport and Regions Secretary, Mr John Prescott, announced later that he had asked officials to start a review of the 1987 Pilotage Act.
Lord Donaldson of Lymington had also been asked to carry out an independent review of the command and control of salvage operations in the wake of the spill.