WILLEMSTAD - Last week, significant damage was inflicted on the coral reef at Boka Sami. The culprit? The ship 'Oceanic Fortune – Monrovia,' which was moored there and was being cleaned underwater by Caribbean Sea Diver.
On Monday, May 20, Gregory Helmich, a physician and PADI Master Scuba Diver, and his dive buddy went diving at the site. Helmich describes how the coral reef was in good condition at that time. "During the dive, however, we noticed the water was very murky and the chains attached to the buoy were moving a lot. Due to the potential danger, we couldn't closely inspect what was happening," said Helmich.
After the dive, Helmich and his buddy saw how the strong wind was causing the ship to swing, changing orientation multiple times and pulling hard on the buoy. This buoy is anchored to the seabed with large metal chains attached to a heavy metal or cement block. This constant pulling caused considerable damage to the coral reef.
When the ship departed on Thursday, May 23, and it was safe to dive again, Helmich and his buddy inspected the damage. "The large metal chains, which normally rest on the seabed, had dragged across the coral reef. This caused extensive damage over an area of at least 150 by 150 meters. The coral reef is completely destroyed," Helmich reported.
Helmich documented the damage with photos and attempted to contact Carmabi and Maritime Management Curaçao but was unable to reach them. The following morning, he officially reported the incident to Carmabi, Curaçao Nature Conservation, Amigu di Tera, the Ministry of GMN, the X-Team, Maritime Authority Curaçao, and the Coast Guard. So far, only Carmabi has confirmed that they will investigate the matter.
The 'Oceanic Fortune' is no longer at Boka Sami; it was moored at Caracasbaai until the evening of Sunday, May 27, and remains in the waters around Curaçao.
Helmich hopes that action will be taken following his report. "This is the second time that shipping has caused extensive damage to the Boka Sami coral reef. The environment had barely recovered from the 2019 damage and has now been completely wiped out again. As far as I know, no damage claim was ever pursued against the drilling platform at that time; hopefully, this ship can be held accountable in time," he said.