Snapper anchoring warning
No anchoring in shipping lanes and warning of stiff fines after seven shipping incidents in a monthTransport Safety Victoria (TSV) has warned boaters to steer clear of big ships, after seven incidents involving recreational boats either drift fishing or anchored in or around shipping lanes in Port Phillip Bay since the start of the snapper fishing season a month ago.
TSV Director of Maritime Safety, Peter Corcoran, said that boaters must take a safety first approach when fishing in the bay.
"By anchoring or fishing in or near shipping channels, you are breaking the law and putting yourself into the path of big ships like the 159,000 tonne Cape Brindisi.
"Large ships like the Cape Brindisi do not have brakes and can’t steer around small boats. They cannot alter course easily and their draft confines them to designated channels. It can take 500 metres to turn and they create two-metre waves as they pass.
"On the water, it can be difficult to estimate the speed at which big ships travel. It may not look like it from a distance, but big ships can travel at speeds up to 20 knots.
"Also with a tanker like the Cape Brindisi, which is 274m long and 48 metres wide, the pilot is not able to see for many hundreds of metres ahead.
"If you are going out fishing, steer clear of big ships and do not anchor in shipping channels or fairways. In particular, you must not anchor, drift or fish in Transit Only Zone in the north of Port Phillip Bay.
"We also strongly advise boaters not to anchor or drift in the high shipping hazard zone in Port Phillip Bay (from Hovell Pile in the south of the bay to the Transit Only Zone in the north of the bay) or any other port waters," Mr Corcoran said.
A transit only zone in Port Phillip Bay extends from Point Gellibrand (Williamstown) south to an imaginary line at latitude 38° south.
Mr Corcoran said that TSV and other maritime enforcement agencies are patrolling the bay and cracking down on boaters who anchor in shipping lanes.
"Anchoring in shipping channels is against the law and TSV officers and Water Police are targeting boaters who do the wrong thing," Mr Corcoran said.
Boaters who anchor in shipping channels risk an on-the-spot fine of $295.
For more information, visit the TSV website at http://www.transportsafety.vic.gov.auv
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