KD Inderapura - Terkini (English Translation follows)

This just came in from our Friend in the Navy. I tried to translate it into English - simply too hard - so will post this Bahasa version first. Can any one help with the translation? 

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KD Sri Inderapura - TERKINI

Selasa 13hb Oktober.

KD Seri Inderapura ditarik keluar dari kawasan jetty dalam keadaan masih terbakar dan hampir tenggelam. ‘Bridge’, tempat tertinggi di atas kapal dimana ‘commanding officer’ dan ‘officer of the watch’ memberi arahan ketika beroperasi, telah pun runtuh.

Rabu 14hb Oktober.

Jasadnya kini bersemadi bersama alat ganti bernilai jutaan ringgit yang telah dimuat naik ke dalam kapal. Ia bersemadi dengan aman dan damai menjadi tukun berhampiran Pulau Pangkor. Yang masih kelihatan cuma tiang atau ’mast’ sebagai kenangan. Sebagai peringatan tentang kelemahan dan kekurangan TLDM dari serendah-rendah pangkat hinggalah pegawai tertinggi.

Untuk beberapa hari dan minggu, minyak yang keluar dari perut kapal akan mencemar pantai dan perairan sekitar. Hasil tangkapan nelayan akan terjejas. Ganti rugi yang terpaksa dibayar kepada mereka yang terlibat sama ada pengusaha hotel atau pelancungan akan menambah beban yang ditanggung kementerian. Dan pembayar cukai.

Untuk pengetahuan, kapal ini pernah terbakar pada tahun 2002. Kerja baik pulih menelan belanja puluhan juta. Apakah keputusan ‘board of inquiry’ pernah diumum. Ataupun sudah terkunci rapi di bawah tikar.

Kebakaran ditahun itu ‘kononnya’ berpunca dari litar pintas. Jurutera yang ditugaskan menyiasat tidak menemui tanda-tanda ‘cable’ terbakar. Anak kapal beria benar mengatakan itulah puncanya sehingga sanggup bersumpah menjunjung quran. Kalau tidak ada pegawai ‘board of inquiry’ B.O.I. yang naik angin mengehempas kerusi kerana tidak percaya dengan alasan yang diberikan, mungkin punca sebenar masih terperap.

Apa puncanya?

Kebakaran bermula dari ‘galley’ ataupun dapur. Ada anak kapal yang menggunakan galley terleka  kerana asyik menonton video sehingga tidak sedar kuali berisi minyak yang sudah terlampau panas disambar api. Kebakaran dapat diatasi tapi kerana kurang teliti, api marak kembali dan kali ini di luar galley. Mujurlah kebakaran kali kedua yang lebih besar dapat diatasi. Kalau tidak, punca sebenar pasti lenyap.

Apa pula punca kebakaran yang memusnahkan seluruh kapal dikali ini. Bagaimana Menteri Pertahanan boleh membuat kenyataan (atau andaian) bahwa ia berpunca dari litar pintas dan tiada langsung unsur sabotaj.

Sangkaan TLDM telah mengabaikan latihan memadam api atau ‘fire drill’ rupanya kurang tepat. Dimalam kejadian, pegawai bertugas telah membuat lima kali latihan (atau deraan) sehingga anak kapal bukan sahaja merasa bosan tapi juga keletihan. Tak cukup tidur.

Bila ‘alarm’ berbunyi untuk kali keenam, anak-anak kapal yang baru terlelap menyangka itu juga latihan. Setelah menyedari ia  kebakaran sebenar, badan yang lesu sudah tidak dapat menerima arahan otak.  Malah otak pun sudah tidak mampu berfikir. Dalam keadaan kelam kabut, maka terjadilah apa yang tidak sepatutnya berlaku.

Apa yang berlaku. Bekalan elektrik diputuskan. (Masih belum jelas sama ada bekalan dari generator kapal atau dari darat). Tanpa bekalan elektrik, kapal menjadi gelap. ‘Bilge & fire fighting pump’ tidak dapat digunakan. Dan api pun terbiar marak sementara menunggu bantuan luar.

Kenapa bekalan elektrik keseluruh kapal diputuskan. Tidakadakah pemutus litar atau ‘circuit breaker’ yang boleh diguna untuk memutuskan bekalan kebahagian yang terlibat sahaja. Apakah lima kali ’fire drill’ dimalam itu tidak mengambil kira situasi sedemikian. Apakah yang difokuskan oleh pegawai bertugas. Difahamkan, pegawai tersebut memiliki kelayakan khusus dalam bidang memadam kebakaran atau dikenali juga sebagai ‘fire officer’.

Lazimnya, kebakaran di kapal lebih mudah dikawal kalau ditangani oleh anak kapal sendiri. Ahli bomba dari luar tidak mungkin tahu siluk belok kapal. Di perut kapal sebesar KDSI, orang boleh tersesat walaupun dalam keadaan terang. Ini kan pula dalam gelap gelita. Tersesat dalam keadaan sedemikian mengundang maut.

Apabila kapal cuma bergantung harap kepada pasukan bomba awam untuk memadam kebakaran, maka inilah kesudahannya.

KDSI tenggelam bukan kerana kebakaran tapi disebabkan air laut yang disemburkan kedalam kapal tanpa mengambil kira faktor ‘bouyancy’ sehingga ‘tank deck, engine room’ dan setiap ruang dipenuhi air laut.

Apa yang TLDM boleh pelajari dari episod duka ini? Apalah agak jawapannya kepada kemusykilan berikut:

Untuk apa ‘fire drill’ diadakan lima kali dalam satu malam. Mendidik atau mendera.

Di mana letaknya  (kalau ada) ‘portable bilge & fire fighting pump’ yang boleh beroperasi tanpa bergantung kepada bekalan elektrik kapal

Kenapa bekalan elektrik keseluruh kapal diputuskan.

Kenapa tidak digunakan pemutus litar atau ‘circuit breaker’ untuk memutuskan bekalan elektrik kekawasan yang terbabit sahaja.

Akhir sekali…Bagaimana pegawai berkenaan menterjemah kepakaran mengendalikan ‘fire drill’ dalam situasi kebakaran sebenar???

ENGLISH TRANSLATION:

KD Seri Inderapura was towed out of the jetty with fire still raging and the largest landing craft in the Royal Malaysian Navy was about to sink. The bridge, the highest point from where the commanding officer (CO) and the officer of the watch (OOW) command the ship had already collapsed.

Wednesday, October 14

The battered hull, together with spare parts worth millions of ringgit that was onboard now rests at the bottom of the sea. She will rest in peace as an artificial reef in the vicinity of Pulau Pangkor. Her mast, still sticking out of the water will serve as a reminder of the weaknesses and deficiencies of the Royal Malaysian Navy. From the lowest rank (rating) to the highest command. For the coming days and weeks oil will spill out of her tank and pollute the sea and the surrounding beaches. Compensations to fishermen, hotels and the tourism industry will further erode the Ministry’s resources and of course that of the tax payers.

Just to refresh our memory, a similar fire had ravaged the same ship in 2002 at a cost to the taxpayers of tens of millions of ringgit in restoration work. What the outcome of the board of inquiries has not been made public and will be discreetly swept under the carpet.

It was widely believed that the aforesaid incident was due to an electrical short circuit. If this were so, then the investigating team would have found evidence to substantiate this - such as burnt electrical cables. Which they did not. The sailors onboard who were called to testify vehemently insisted that it was really a short circuit and even went to the extent of swearing on the Holy Quran.  After seeing one of the officers in the Board Of Inquiry blew his top, a witness finally admitted that it was their folly and they have been lying all along.

What was the cause then?

The fire started from the galley. A sailor, or a number of them were using gallery and while waiting for the oil in the frying pan to get hot, he or they had left the galley unattended. And while they were busy watching videos, the overheated oil caught fire. The fire was put off in no time. And believing that all is well, they left the galley not realizing that the ember was still smoldering. Luckily, the second fire did not destroy the whole ship otherwise the truth will never be known.

What is the cause of the fire that obliterated the whole ship this time around? How on earth did the Defense Minister came out with the prompt conclusion (or presumption) that the carnage was caused by a short circuit and completely ruled out sabotage or arson. 

  

Initially it was thought that TLDM has neglected that very important safety aspect of having an effective Fire Fighting team but this was incorrect or at least partially incorrect. The night in question, the officer on duty conducted five fire drills, the last of which was a couple of hours before the real fire. After being repeatedly disrupted from their sleep, a feeling of disgust, slowly but surely begin to take shape within the crew tired souls and body. So, when the alarm sounded for the sixth time, they thought it was just another drill not realizing that this time it was for real. How would we expect the sailors to react? With their tired bodies they are no more able to respond quickly to what the mind ordered or perhaps the brain failed to think clearly. In the confusion, procedures went haywire.

What went wrong? The electrical supply was disconnected. It has yet to be confirmed whether the electrical supply was from the ship’s own generator or from TNB.  When the ship is deprived of such vital supply, darkness engulfed. Bilge and fire fighting pumps become useless. And the ship was left to burn while waiting for outside help.

The big question mark is…why was the electricity supply to the ship disconnected prematurely. Aren’t there any circuit breakers that could isolate certain section onboard? Was there any emphasis placed for such contingencies during the five fire drills preceding the inferno? What was the focus then? And yet it is believed that the officer conducting the drill is a specially trained fire officer.

When fire occurs onboard ships, the best men to fight the fire are the ship’s crew. Civilians or outsiders who are alien to door and hatch markings will more often than not get lost even when the ships are fully illuminated. What more when the ship is in total darkness. Under such circumstances, losing your way is tantamount to inviting disaster.

KDSI lost her buoyancy not so much because of the fire but more likely due to the incessant spraying of seawater that eventually filled the tank deck, engine room and other compartments.

What could TLDM learn from this sad episode? What are the answers to the following?

·      Why there were ‘five fire drills’ that night and for what purpose

·      Where were, if any, the portable bilge and fire pumps that could operate independently

·      Who gave the order for the electrical supply to be disconnected prematurely?

·      Were there circuit breakers that could isolate certain part of the ship and if they existed, why were they not utilized?

·      Lastly…how competent was the officer in applying his skill of 'drilling' the crew when the situation warranted?