S.L. 234.49 Art. 9Preservation of evidence and detenion order.

(1) Following a marine accident involving a Maltese ship which is reportable in accordance with regulation 6, the owner or operator of the ship or her master shall so far as is practicable ensure that all -

(a) charts;

(b) log books;

(c) electronic and magnetic recordings and video tapes, including information from a VDR, S-VDR or any other recording system relating to the period preceding, during and after the marine accident and take the necessary steps, to prevent such information from being overwritten; and

(d) documents, equipment or other records which might reasonably be considered as evidential material and therefore pertinent to the accident, are kept and that no alteration is made to any recordings or entries in them:

Provided that following a marine incident involving a Maltese ship, the owner or operator of the ship or her master shall comply with the requirements of this sub-regulation if requested to do so by the head of marine safety investigation.

(2) The duty under sub-regulation (1) to ensure that documents, information or records are kept and not altered, shall continue until a notification is received from the head of marine safety investigation that no investigation is to take place or that the investigation is completed.

(3) Following a marine accident or incident in Maltese waters involving a ship which is not a Maltese ship, the owner or operator of the ship or her master shall comply with the requirements of sub-regulation (1), if requested to do so by the head of marine safety investigation.

(4) Pending a marine safety investigation into a reported occurrence in Maltese waters and with due regard to the requirements of regulation 7(1), no person other than the head of marine safety investigation may access freely an accident site or interfere with any ship, appliances or other equipment involved in a marine accident or incident without the prior written consent of the head of marine safety investigation. This paragraph, however, shall not apply to the Registrar-General, the Harbour Master, Executive Police, Civil Protection officials, Health Services, and judicial authorities.

(5) Following a marine accident or incident, the head of marine safety investigation may, if he considers it reasonably necessary for the collection or preservation of evidential material, require the owner or operator of the ship or her master, to ensure that a ship is accessible to the Marine Safety Investigation Unit, until the process of collecting or preserving the evidential material has been completed to its satisfaction:

Provided that when exercising the authority to detain a ship under this paragraph, the head of marine safety investigation shall do so in consultation with the Registrar-General.

(6) The head of marine safety investigation shall not unduly delay the departure of a ship for the collection or preservation, as the case may be, of evidential material including evidential material mentioned in sub-regulation (1).

(7) The detention order under sub-regulation (5) may include a direction that a ship shall remain in a particular place, or shall move to a particular anchorage or berth, and may also specify circumstances when the master of the ship may move his ship from a specified place for reasons of safety or prevention of pollution. When issuing such directions, the head of marine safety investigation is to be consulted in order to ensure that evidential material mentioned in sub-regulation (1) is not compromised as far as practicable.

(8) Without prejudice to the rights enjoyed by Malta to hold administrative or judicial investigations, the relevant provisions of IMO Assembly Resolution A.987(24) shall be taken into account.