Scandinavian Star disaster: Denmark accused of safety conspiracy

The Danish Maritime Authority has come under fire from a union campaigner for its role in the Scandinavian Star ferry disaster, writes Andrew Draper

An independent task force set up by the Danish Minister of Justice has concluded in a new report into the Scandinavian Star disaster – during which 159 people died after a fire was deliberately set onboard while the ferry was enroute between Denmark and Norway on 7 April 1990 – that if an inspector from the Danish Maritime Authority (DMA) had boarded and inspected the vessel before it sailed with passengers, the inspector would probably or certainly have observed that the load line certificate related to another ferry.

An inspector would also have observed the vessel had a new crew, that there was intense activity onboard, and that parts of the passenger section were under renovation, plus clear grounds to make a more detailed inspection, which would have shown mandatory lifeboat and fire drills had not been carried out.

It added a port state control would have resulted in a fire drill, which would have equipped the crew to deal with the arson attacks. The defects and deficiencies in the ship certificates and physical condition would have led to intervention to prevent the ship from sailing from Frederikshavn and ‘would very likely have reduced the scale of the disaster and given passengers better chances of survival.’

They wrongly claimed that they had no responsibility for the ship as it was flying the Bahamas flag. For 34 years, they advised parliament and ministers with incorrect answers and manipulated the press. The DMA never acknowledged that they had a conflict of interest in that process Henrik Berlau, Scandinavian Star campaigner

The task force noted in its report that the ferry had been registered in the Bahamas, but that Denmark and Norway had responsibility as port states for ensuring safety. Both had the competence to control the ferry, but neither did. A joint Nordic investigation subsequently criticised them for this.

The DMA failed in its communication to act without a conflict of interest with politicians, government ministers, police, media and general public, it said: ‘We assess that the Danish Maritime Authority’s and the relevant ministries’ failure to recognise and manage the risk of disqualification of the Authority is not only regrettable, but worthy of criticism, and that it is likely to create distrust in the Danish Maritime Authority’s public sector consultancy and case processing in the decades following the fire.’

The ITF said it is looking into supporting the crew and families of deceased crew members. Henrik Berlau, now retired as an official of the Danish 3F union and a long-time campaigner to expose the DMA’s role, told the Telegraph it is frightening how the report reveals that the DMA ‘masterminded a conspiracy’ to deflect the responsibility for allowing the ship to sail.

‘They wrongly claimed that they had no responsibility for the ship as it was flying the Bahamas flag. For 34 years, they advised parliament and ministers with incorrect answers and manipulated the press. The DMA never acknowledged that they had a conflict of interest in that process,’ he added.

He and fellow campaigners are now awaiting the government’s response and how they will deal with the ‘corrupt’ maritime agency, he said.