Stolt Valor

The incident

On the 16th March, the chemical tanker Stolt Valor was sailing in the Persian Gulf when it suffered an explosion and a fire which lasted 5 days.

Of the 25 crew members, 24 were rescued by an American destroyer while one was reported missing.

Once the blaze was under control the response team noticed that 4 of the ship's tanks were severely damaged.

On the 25th March, after several unsuccessful attempts, a tug managed to establish a towline to distance the Stolt Valor from the coastline. Then began the long haul at sea for this vessel in difficulty.

The place of refuge issue

The Captain requested authorisation to access the ports of four nearby countries, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Iran. All four refused.

The tanker finally received permission from Saudi Arabia to anchor in its waters on the 1st April, after long negotiations led by MEMAC (Marine Emergency Mutual Aid Center).

Cargo transfer operations then began, finishing up on the 29th April.

On the 30th July 2012, once all the hazardous substances had been removed, Bahrain permitted the vessel to be towed to one of its ports to be scrapped.

This incident illustrates the difficulty for ship owners in finding a place of refuge when a vessel is in difficulty.