Posted at 11:41 a.m., Thursday, May 9, 2002
Human remains found on tanker
By Mike Gordon
Advertiser Staff Writer
A positive identification will have to be made by the Honolulu medical examiner's office, which will take custody of the remains.
"Pacific Environmental company workers found them in a corner of the engine room," said Petty Officer Erica Ryan, a Coast Guard spokeswoman. "They are small bones. Because of the fire in the engine room, there is hardly anything left."
Gi Hui Nian of the People's Republic of China, who was last seen in the engine room, is the only fatality in the fire, which crippled the ship and left it adrift for six weeks. It was towed to Pier 24 at Honolulu Harbor last week.
Pacific Environmental finished pumping out six feet of oily water from the engine room yesterday, Ryan said.
So far, 26,947 gallons of diesel fuel have been removed as well as an unspecified amount of lube oil, Ryan said.
More than 40,600 gallons of oily water also was removed. Workers are still pumping oil fuel out of cargo tanks, Ryan said. The job, including disposing of the ship at sea, if that is decided upon, is expected to last another two weeks.
