Maritime Safety Breach: UK Port Captain's High Alcohol Level

By Eve Church

Updated January 24, 2024 at 07:06 pm Published January 25, 2024 at 04:04 am Etc/UTC

At the Crown Court, a 65-year-old captain will face sentencing after acknowledging he was in command of the containership MSC Roshney V while exceeding the legal alcohol limit for seafarers.

The captain, Zbigniew Chowaniec, a Polish citizen, was detained on January 15 when the 4,888 TEU vessel docked at the Port of Felixstowe. Subsequently, he was taken to the Martlesham Police Investigation Centre. A breathalyzer test there registered an alcohol level of 93 micrograms per 100 milliliters of breath, which is 68 micrograms above the permissible limit.

Chowaniec entered a guilty plea at Ipswich Magistrates’ Court the following day. His sentencing is scheduled for February. After the hearing, he was released on conditional bail and required to surrender his passport.

The MSC Roshney V had arrived in Felixstowe from the Port of Antwerp-Bruges and was set to journey next to the port of Canakkale in Turkey.