PORT ANGELES — A log ship remained at anchor in Port Angeles Harbor on Thursday as its captain appeared in federal court for allegedly being drunk while the vessel sailed the Strait of Juan de Fuca earlier this week.
A charge of operating a vessel while under the influence of alcohol has been filed against Seong Ug Sin, 52.
Sin, of South Korea, made his first appearance in U.S. District Court in Tacoma on Thursday afternoon.
He was released on his own recognizance afterward.
He faces a maximum penalty of one year in prison and a $100,000 fine.
He surrendered his passport before being released.
Sin’s next court appearance, a preliminary hearing, has been set for May 4.
Emily Langlie, U.S. Attorney’s Office spokeswoman, said his lawyer declared in court that Sin pleads not guilty, even though his court appearance was not an arraignment.
The conditions of his release say he can’t consume alcohol, he must remain in Western Washington, and he can’t operate a vehicle or vessel.
The Coast Guard found Sin allegedly drunk while a boarding team conducted an unannounced inspection of his ship, the STX Daisy, early Wednesday morning after it was stopped about four miles west of Port Angeles, according to court documents.
The 587-foot Panamanian-flagged vessel was en route to Olympia from Qingdao, China, to load timber, the Coast Guard said.
One member of the boarding party smelled a strong odor of alcohol on Sin, according to the Coast Guard’s report.
A breathalyzer test found that Sin had a blood alcohol level of .108.
Coast Guard spokesman Lt. Collin Bronson said he didn’t know if Sin had been actually piloting the ship.
No matter who is behind the wheel, U.S. law requires captains to have a blood alcohol level of less than 0.04.
The breathalyzer test found that Sin was 2.7 times over that limit.
“They are held to a very strict standard,” Bronson said.
The Coast Guard conducts about four or five unannounced inspections of commercial ships a month in the Strait, he said.
Their purpose is to ensure that the crew isn’t violating any U.S. laws — including the requirement that a ship’s captain remain sober, Bronson said.
“We are making sure that the waterways are navigated by competent, professional mariners,” he said.
While Bronson said he didn’t know how often a ship’s captain is found drunk, he said such incidents are not common. But they are also not unheard of either, he said.
“Most professional mariners do what they are trained to do . . . and this unfortunately has happened in the past,” said Bronson.
The ship, as all other freighters, would have been piloted through the rest of Washington’s waters once it got to Port Angeles by a member of Puget Sound Pilots.
State law requires the certified pilots to guide all commercial ships east of Ediz Hook.
But the vessels must still have a captain on board, which is why the STX Daisy will remain in the harbor until its owner, STX Pan Ocean, finds a replacement, Bronson said.
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Reporter Tom Callis can be reached at 360-417-3532 or at tom.callis@peninsuladailynews.com.