Wind may stop Agulhas chase

2003-08-18 12:07

Cape Town - High winds at Marion Island have prevented South African polar supply vessel SA Agulhas from joining the chase for westward-fleeing Uruguyan trawler Viarsa 1.

An Australian fisheries patrol boat, Southern Supporter, has been in hot pursuit of the trawler which is believed to be carrying a cargo of illegally-caught Patagonian toothfish.

According to Marine and Coastal Management head Horst Kleinschmidt, the suspected poacher is about 600 nautical miles south of Marion, and trying to work her way west through loose ice floes.

The Southern Supporter, which does not have reinforced bows, is keeping pace to the north, out of the ice.

Kleinschmidt said on Monday a final decision on whether to send the SA Agulhas to help the Australians would be taken at 18:00 on Monday.

Although an earlier decision had been taken to divert the polar vessel - from her mission to drop off supplies at the Sanae base in Antarctica - to join the chase, high winds at Marion Island had prevented the off-loading of a helicopter.

This had to be done before the SA Agulhas could set off in pursuit of the Viarsa 1.

"We've been hamstrung logistically... but we will consider the overall situation at 6pm," said Kleinschmidt.

All a question of logistics

Factors to be taken into account would include the weather and the speed at which the Viarsa 1 continued to make in its flight towards South America.

"It's a matter of relative speed and position, and working out whether we can catch the Viarsa," Kleinschmidt said.

One thing that could slow the fleeing trawler down was that it did not have satellite navigation equipment.

"Without this, it can't see where the ice is forming, and could run into some problems."

Contrary to reports, the Viarsa was not "trapped" in the ice, he said.

The Heard and McDonald islands, Australian possessions, are located about 4 000km south-west of Perth, in the southern Indian Ocean.

- SAPA