CPA: Buoys back this week

Saipan seaport manager Antonio Cabrera hopes that vessels will be able to enter the Saipan and Tinian harbors with more ease after the U.S. Coast Guard brings buoys back to their position this week.

Cabrera said the Coast Guard’s Walnut vessel and its crew will arrive from Guam today to service the navigational aids at the Port of Saipan. The Coast Guard personnel will proceed to Tinian as soon as it corrects the deficiencies at the Saipan harbor.

Citing the presence of off-stationed buoys, the Commonwealth Ports Authority issued last month a memorandum urging all ship captains to apply caution when entering the Saipan and Tinian ports.

This came after Typhoon Tingting hit the islands and brought strong currents that threw buoys from their original position.

While some buoys were temporarily placed in areas where they would not obstruct the entry of vessels, CPA nevertheless advised masters and pilots to be cautious when advancing and transferring a vessel at the Tinian port’s channel and at the sharp bend at the Saipan channel.

The Rota seaport also is undergoing repair and maintenance after being damaged by Typhoon Tingting.

CPA executive director Carlos Salas earlier expressed concern about the safety of vessels berthing at the dock, saying that there may be a deep cavity in the dock structure.

He added that the Rota harbor’s proximity to the open ocean makes it susceptible to damage and very difficult to maintain. The harbor had just been repaired following the devastation caused by Super typhoon Pongsona in Dec. 2002.

Salas said the harbor, located only about 300 to 400 feet away from the open ocean, is now among CPA’s top priorities for repair.

CPA, he said, would send divers to check the channel and the turning basin for any debris or obstruction, and enlist the help of the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in the dock rehabilitation efforts.

On Thursday, President Bush declared the CNMI and Guam as major disaster areas, as a result of the devastation caused by Typhoon Tingting at the end of June.

Under the declaration, federal funding is available to both U.S. jurisdictions and their eligible local governments, as well as certain private non-profit organizations, on a cost-sharing basis for the repair or replacement of facilities damaged by the storm.

Federal funding is also available on a cost-share basis for hazard mitigation measures.