OREANDA-NEWS. August 11, 2011. The Directorate General of Shipping on Wednesday sought a team of expert divers and a diving support vessel from state-run ONGC to help identify the source of leakage from sunken vessel MV Rak Carrier.

“The water depth at the incident site is about 35 metres and above 20 metres, special saturation divers who can handle the water pressure are required for the task. We have divers who have the experience and expertise for the job as they check our pipelines and structure on a daily basis,” said A K Jain, executive director, chief offshore logistics, ONGC.

The vessel, called a saturation chamber, lowers a bell into the water with the divers inside. The plan is that the divers will locate the source of the leak and the salvage company, Titan Salvage, will remove the remaining oil. The leak may possibly be due to a split in the vessel or a vent hole in the oil tank, sources said. The divers will be mobilised by Thursday, subject to weather conditions, and the cost will be borne by the owners of the vessel.

Meanwhile, during the investigation of negligence on the part of the captain of MV Rak, the Yellow Gate police have learnt that the vessel had stopped midway in the sea to refill or remove fuel from its tank. Tanaji Ghadge, DCP, (Port) said they are inquiring about a boat that approached the vessel. “Some fuel was refilled in the vessel as far as we know. We are inquiring the matter,” he said.