Did a ship cause AP gas tragedy?

Did the crew of a ship, who allegedly unloaded liquefied petroleum gas at break-neck speed, cause last fortnight's Andhra Pradesh gas tragedy which claimed 57 lives?

The police believe the crew of MT Nanga Parbat, which discharged imported LPG into Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited's Visakhapatnam refinery just before the tragedy, could provide vital leads in the case.

Reports say MT Nanga Parbat's crew was in a tearing hurry to unload LPG as they were already 12 hours behind schedule. Trying to prevent demurrage, they allegedly unloaded LPG at high pressure, causing cracks in the pipeline.

The ship, chartered by the Shipping Corporation of India, was allowed to sail out of the Visakhapatnam harbour minutes before the blasts occurred on September 14.

The police said senior refinery officials, who have been questioned in the case following the filing of a ''criminal negligence'' case against the refinery management, were silent on the issue. No convincing replies were forthcoming on who ordered the ship's disembarkment.

After leaving the Visakhapatnam port, the ship reportedly anchored at the New Mangalore port for some time, before leaving for Saudi Arabia.

The police said the ship should have been seized immediately. For its logbook would have revealed the quantum of LPG unloaded and received at the spheres, the pressure at which it was transported through the underground pipeline from Dolphin's Nose to the refinery via the naval base.

Asked to comment on the ship's possible role in the accident, refinery officials said, ''A committee is inquiring into the mishap.''

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