Mystery Barge’s Perilous Journey Ends on Remote Australian Shore
A foreign-owned barge, the Nelly 112, found itself grounded on Athikho Poji, a rugged islet in the Torres Strait, on Australia Day, January 26th. The 100-metre vessel’s unexpected arrival has sparked questions about its final voyage, with one eyewitness suggesting the towing operation was ill-equipped for the task.
Noel Gaunt, a retired commercial skipper with nearly four decades of experience navigating the maritime world, claims to have witnessed the barge off the coast of Bali just nine days prior to its grounding near Badu Island. Mr. Gaunt, who was on a fishing boat near Amed in northern Bali on January 17th, reported being within 100 metres of the Nelly 112. He stated that the vessel was being towed by a boat he deemed unsuitable for such a significant load.
“It was not a tug,” Mr. Gaunt explained, describing the towing vessel as being around 50 to 60 feet in length, attempting to haul a barge that would have been “well in excess of a hundred tonnes.” He drew a stark analogy: “It’s like towing a five-trailer road train in the Pilbara with a Hilux.”
Mr. Gaunt, who recently relocated to Bali from Nelson Bay, New South Wales, after a terminal illness diagnosis, observed that the towing vessel appeared to be attempting to keep the barge within a specific channel of the Banda Sea, likely to prevent it from entering the Timor Sea. “It would’ve caused havoc to go through there because [the towing vessel] wasn’t in command of the barge,” he commented, adding that it “was struggling every metre that it took.”
While Mr. Gaunt did not witness the barge’s subsequent movements, he noted that the region experienced severe weather in the days that followed. His professional assessment is that the towing crew may have made the difficult decision to cut the barge loose to ensure the safety of their own vessel and its crew. “It’s the safety of life at sea. You’ve got to look after yourself [and] he would’ve had crew,” he reasoned. He also posited that ocean currents could have been a significant factor in the barge drifting approximately 2,000 kilometres over nine days to reach the Torres Strait.
‘Finders Keepers’ Doesn’t Apply at Sea
The grounding of the Nelly 112 has raised questions about potential ownership claims. Maritime Safety Queensland (MSQ) has contracted a salvage team to return the barge to Indonesia “as soon as practicable.”
However, traditional owner of Badu Island, Edmund Tamwoy, had expressed interest in claiming the barge, given its arrival on his country. Yet, according to Dr. Rosemary Gibson from the University of Queensland’s marine and shipping law unit, the concept of “finders keepers” holds no weight under maritime law.
“Where you do have an owner and the vessel is registered somewhere we can trace it,” Dr. Gibson explained. “There’s nothing to stop them from purchasing the vessel but they wouldn’t just be able to tie a rope around it and declare it theirs.”
Mr. Tamwoy has reportedly been attempting to contact the barge’s owner to make an offer to purchase it. Dr. Gibson advised caution, urging potential buyers to thoroughly consider the costs associated with salvage, repairs, and ongoing maintenance. “There are administrative hurdles that you then have to go through,” she noted. “You’d be wanting to factor all those things in as to whether it’s actually worthwhile.”
MSQ has indicated plans to inspect the barge, though no specific timeline has been provided for when inspectors will travel to Badu Island. For privacy reasons, MSQ is unable to disclose the identity of the barge’s owner. The ABC has reached out to an Indonesian shipping company believed to be associated with the Nelly 112 for comment.
