Cattle cargo causes port panic

SUVA – Vigilant bio-security officers in Fiji had to call on the Fiji Navy to escort an international cargo freighter out of Suva Harbour this week because of its undeclared cargo – 7200 head of cattle.

The incident took place on Monday night on Suva’s main Kings Wharf during what bio-security officers thought were routine ship boarding checks.

Local agents of the Panama-registered freighter, the Polaris, allegedly didn’t notify authorities of the cargo manifest – 7200 head of cattle from Chile bound for mainland China.

The Fiji Navy was immediately alerted after the discovery of the animals in the cargo hold, which dispatched its Australian-built patrol boat to escort the Polaris back to international waters.

Islands Business has been told that once outside the harbour, the captain of Polaris issued a distress call, claiming the boat was low on fuel, water and food, and needed to re-stock supplies.

Bio-Security Authority of Fiji then consulted the Divisional Medical Officer based in Suva who instructed that the boat could be re-supplied but from outside Suva Harbour.

The General Manager of the local shipping agent of Polaris was unavailable to comment on the matter.

A source however told the magazine that for breaching animal quarantine non-disclosure laws, the shipping company has been fined F$35,000.

It’s believed the Polaris had since left Fiji for mainland China.