Fourteen containers carrying explosives aboard the Russian vessel which was arrested in Algoa Bay last week have been offloaded at the Port of Ngqura.
The 14 containers, which have the correct permits to be in the country, were part of a consignment of 34 containers carrying an assortment of explosives and accessories.
Despite the 14 legal containers being offloaded, the remaining 20 containers – which were not destined for South Africa – are still aboard the arrested vessel, Lada, as the criminal investigation by the police’s Hawks unit continues.
The probe was triggered after it was discovered that the 20 containers entered South African waters without the correct permits from the South African Council for the Non-Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction (NPC).
According to the act, the NPC is mandated to oversee biological, chemical and nuclear weapons as well as their delivery systems and components entering the country.
The Lada has been docked in the Bay since August 19, when police detained the vessel after it docked at Ngqura.
The vessel was moved out to sea and monitored by Transnet on the police’s instructions.
Both the Hawks and NPC, however, remain mum on the exact contents of the remaining 20 containers.
At 5pm on Saturday, after offloading the containers, the Lada went back out to sea and anchored about 10km from the port.
Port manager Tandi Lebakeng confirmed that the containers had been offloaded.
“The containers left the port immediately after it was discharged yesterday,” she said.
Asked why the Lada remains docked in the Bay, Lebakeng said they were still monitoring the vessel as the police had not issued the order to release it.
Asked about the content of the containers, Lebakeng said in terms of the International Maritime Dangerous Goods regulation, she was only aware of their class category.
Bay disaster management head Shane Brown said the offloading on Saturday had gone smoothly, with the Bay’s fire department and a Hazmat team on standby.
Brown confirmed that they were still in contact with the relevant authorities while the Lada remains in Algoa Bay.
Asked about the remaining 20 containers, Brown said the police would not disclose information about them.
Since the arrest, the country’s ocean safety watchdog, the South African Maritime Safety Authority, had been alerted and confirmed that the “dangerous goods” on the vessel were stored correctly in terms of international law.
The NPC – which answers directly to minister Rob Davies – confirmed that it was assisting police with the investigation into the allegedly unauthorised cargo.
“The explosives additives in question have both civilian [industrial] and military applications and are therefore controlled items,” trade and industry spokesperson Sidwell Medupe said. He would not say what the vessel was carrying.