**Australian PM Kevin Rudd has voiced his anger over the grounding of a Chinese ship in the Great Barrier Reef.**Mr Rudd said it was “outrageous” the ship had apparently strayed 12km (7.5 miles) off course through the marine park, where it is now leaking oil.
He said the situation remained serious and vowed to bring those responsible for the disaster to account.
Officials say the ship is badly damaged but stable and that the threat of oil slicks has been largely contained.
Mr Rudd said there was “no greater natural asset for Australia than the Great Barrier Reef” and that he took any threat to the marine park “fundamentally seriously”.
“From where I sit, it is outrageous that any vessel could find itself 12km off course, it seems, in the Great Barrier Reef,” he said, after inspecting the site of the grounding by helicopter.
“The practical challenge is to deal with this situation now, then is to bring to account those who are responsible.”
The Chinese-registered ship is balanced precariously on Douglas Shoals, off the east coast of Great Keppel Island and well outside the authorised shipping channel.
There were fears that the vessel could break up, spilling hundreds of tonnes of oil.
But officials said a small oil slick had already been broken up by chemical dispersants, while booms would be deployed to protect the surrounding area in case of further leaks.
A tug boat is at the scene to help prevent it from keeling over and to assist with any attempt at refloating the stricken vessel. Its Chinese crew have remained on board.
‘Hour-by-hour’
An investigation has been launched to find out why the bulk carrier was so far off its set course, well outside the authorised shipping corridor.
Officials have suggested it could have been taking a short cut, something ships have been known to do in the past.
Patrick Quirk of Maritime Safety Queensland (MSQ) said he had heard reports from fishermen of ships taking the shorter route through the area.
“I do not doubt what the fishermen are telling us. We have thousands and thousands of vessel movements on the Queensland coast every year,” he told reporters.
“All I’m saying is that some vessels may not always utilise best practice. We are not always aware of those occasions.”
Mr Quirk said the ship appeared to have been stabilised but that workers were managing the situation “on an hour-by-hour, risk-by-risk basis”.
Queensland State Premier Anna Bligh has said the ship’s owners, the Shenzhen Energy Group, could be fined up to A$1m ($920,000) for straying.
“There are safe authorised shipping channels and that’s where this ship should have been,” she said.
The 230-metre (754-ft) Shen Neng 1 is carrying 950 tonnes of oil and about 65,000 tonnes of coal.
It was heading to China from the Queensland port of Gladstone.
The Great Barrier Reef is the world’s largest reef system and extends for more than 2,500km.
Celebrated as the world’s largest living organism, it is already feared under threat from climate change.This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.