Malta ship owner fined $150,000 for unsafe conditions

Malta ship owner fined $150,000 for unsafe conditions The owner of a bulk cargo ship admitted in federal court in Oakland on Tuesday that the company allowed the vessel to cross the Atlantic Ocean with two large cracks in the deck.
   Malta-based Twilight Marine Ltd. pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of grossly negligent operation of a vessel. The company agreed in court to pay a $50,000 fine and $100,000 in restitution.
   In a plea agreement filed Tuesday, Twilight Marine admitted that the crew operated the ship in a “grossly negligent manner that endangered the life, limb and property of a person.” The two three-feet-long cracks had been covered by tape and painted over to blend in with the vessel's deck.
   As part of the plea, the company also agreed to abide by an environmental compliance program under which its crewmembers would be properly trained. Twilight Marine will pay the imposed $100,000 restitution fine to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation’s Northern Coastal California Restoration Fund for various environmental projects.