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The Media Invasion |
Because of the very slippery surface at the top of the cliffs immediately above the Braer it was considered, initially for health and safety reasons, to exclude the media from the vicinity of the wreck. However, knowing how tenacious the media can be and as all the media wanted film & pictures of the stricken vessel, it was decided to bus them to the site in small groups for short periods of time. This system was coordinated by the Police and worked very well. The Police were also used to keep the media away from the Wildlife Response Centre at Boddam (WRC) as journalists and film crews persistently tried to get inside the WRC and particularly wanted to see and film live birds in the building. It proved almost impossible however, to do any work outwith these areas without attracting the attention of the media. Film crews and journalists were not allowed to travel in the same vehicles as teams checking beaches for live & dead birds but volunteers were advised to co-operate with the press providing it did not interfere with their work, and restrict comments to describing what they were doing at the time. The severe weather meant that there were invariably relatively long periods of inactivity and during this time the media looked for 'news' stories from different 'angles'. Consequently one lesson learned was that people involved in incidents should be aware that their personal life may become of great interest to the media, adding to the stress of those involved and their families, a fact that spouses and partners of key personnel were previously unaware of and many found difficult to cope with. During the twice daily press conference all the relevant information was given to the media. The management team wrongly assumed this was enough for local needs. This was not the case and the reliance on the press caused the Shetland public to feel that they were not receiving information first hand or enough detailed local information. When this was realised, other methods of communication were put in place including 'letter drops', notice boards at shops and post offices, etc. Meetings with community representatives were also initiated, e.g. Ministers, shop keepers and local school teachers and this certainly helped the situation. At its height the media influx also meant that there were almost two media people present for every resident in the area. This caused problems as locals were constantly barraged by press asking questions such as "are you worried about the cancer risk from the benzene in the oil?". This naturally heightened anxiety and stress levels in the south Mainland community. VIPs The concern of the UK Government and people of the UK was reflected by VIP visits to Shetland. HRH the Duke of Edinburgh, HRH the Prince of Wales and Government Ministers (including Michael Howard, the then Secretary of State for the Environment and Ian Lang, the then Secretary of State for Scotland), flew to Shetland during the incident. The associated media interest in these visits was considerable and required significant planning, but assisted in obtaining necessary logistical support. In a Parliamentary statement on the wreck of the Braer, Ian Lang announced on the 26th January 1993 his decision to appoint an Ecological Steering Group on the oil spill in Shetland (ESGOSS), to look at the environmental impact of the spill. The ESGOSS terms of reference were as follows: 1. To monitor environmental work arising from the incident and to provide a focus for liaison and advice. 2. To assess the impact of the incident on the ecology of the Shetland Isles. 3. To develop urgently the best strategies in the short and longer terms for dealing with the implications of the incident as they affect the ecology of the Shetland Isles and to report to the Secretary of State for Scotland on these at an early date. 4. To oversee special studies for monitoring the impact on and subsequent recovery of the environment in order to advise the Government of the lessons to be learned which could be applied more widely, whether in the United Kingdom or elsewhere. Details of the Esgoss report are given in the Links page. |
A cartoon of the media invasion following the spill that appeared in the Shetland Times in January 1993. Cartoon by SMIRK INK. |
Incident Management Team & Media at one of the twice daily press conferences. |
Media with police escort filming at the wreck site. |
Media crew at oiled beach. |
Beach crews posing with oiled birds for photographers. |
Michael Howard, Ian Lang & media at the Boddam WRC. |
HRH the Prince of Wales at the Scalloway Fisheries College where farmed salmon were tested for oil. |
Filming at the wreck. |
Preparing the press photos. |
The final result. |
Adjusting an oiled shag for the perfect photo. |
The media are a part of every major incident and as such are recognised as having a significant role to play in the dissemination of relevant information during incidents such as the Braer. At one stage there were over 500 media personnel and 35 Television companies from throughout the world in Shetland covering the spill. This naturally placed great strain on accomodation and other resources. After the first few days all rental vehicles had been taken and some islanders were renting their own vehicles to media crews. Fortunately, facilities at Sumburgh Airport could accommodate this huge influx and provided an excellent base for the media, as the Braer response centre was also in the building. At one stage however, the Airport ran out of food due to the sheer number of people based there. During the incident, 'open' press conferences were organised twice daily for any of the media to attend and ask questions of a panel comprising members of the management team dealing with the incident. These press conferences usually lasted about an hour and any question could be asked. The management panel usually comprised 6 to 8 people with differing areas of expertise e.g. salvage, health, environment, etc. However, the Shetland Islands Council Chief Executive, the Director of Marine Operations, the Director of Environmental Services and the Chief Scientific Officer of the Marine Pollution Control Unit (MPCU) were in attendance at every conference. Any questions left unanswered at press conferences were always answered at the next, and by and large outwith conference times the incident management team were left alone to get on with their work. The Shetland Islands Council (SIC) Press Officer also arranged 'one to one' interviews during quieter moments of the day, after the various management team meetings were concluded. |
Another important consequence of this accident and its significant media coverage was an inquiry set up to recommend measures to protect the United Kingdom coastline from pollution caused by merchant shipping. In 1994, a report from the inquiry led by Lord Donaldson of Lymington, commonly known as the Donaldson Report but correctly entitled 'Safer Ships, Cleaner Seas', announced a total of 103 recommendations. These recommendations addressed a wide range of shipping standards: 20 topic areas were covered including ship design, operational discharges, port state control and dealing with emergencies. Human error is also a major cause of maritime casualties and there is wide agreement that around 80 per cent of all maritime incidents are caused or aggravated by human error. It is therefore not surprising that the inquiry made a number of recommendations relating to ship operation and crewing. In addition, the Inquiry recommended that the most sensitive and environmentally valuable parts of our coastal seas should be identified as Marine Environment High Risk Areas (MEHRAs) in order to protect them from any such disasters as the Braer grounding. This document is out of print but copies may be found via amazon at http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0101276621/ref=nosim/1557 |
braer.net |
M.V. Braer grounding and oil spill Garth's Ness, Shetland, 5 Jan 1993 |