Weather Puts Off Rescue Of Cargo Ship Aground Off Latvia

[Nick the Greek]

A rescue operation to salvage a Cyprus-registered cargo ship that ran aground 800 to 900 meters off Latvia's coast in the Baltic Sea will have to be postponed because of inclement weather, Latvian officials said Tuesday.

The Greek-owned ship, Golden Sky, was carrying 25,000 tons of mineral fertilizer when it ran aground during the night between Sunday and Monday off the coast of Ventspils, a port town, due to a big storm and gale force winds.

Latvian helicopters evacuated 16 crew members, though eight others stayed onboard to prevent the damage from worsening, the coast guard service said.

The service said the ship's engine room incurred serious damage and the ship is leaking fuel. Two of the ship's five compartments are filled with water.

Capt. Hermanis Cernovs, chief of the naval coast guard service, said that a helicopter crew spotted a 40-kilometer-long oil slick in the sea. However, a mop-up operation is ruled out, Cernovs said, since booms used to contain oil spills are ineffective in such high waves.

The owners of the ship arrived in Latvia on Tuesday and were planning a rescue operation, but it was unclear when they could set to work due to 3-meter-high waves lashing the ship's hull.

Cernovs said that the ship's owners were hoping to begin the rescue operation Wednesday, but that the weather forecast was for more heavy winds and that rescuers were more likely to start the mission Thursday.

The ship first encountered engine problems during the storm and decided to drop its anchor, Cernovs said. However, due to the sheer force of the winds the chain snapped and the ship was tossed aground.

Source: Lloyds of London

Ο ασχημος καιρος στη Βορεια Ευρωπη το εκανε το θαυμα του, παρα πολλα τετοια περιστατικα τις τελευταιες μερες. Το πλοιο ανηκει στην Samios Shipping του Πειραια και το πληρωμα αποτελειτο εξ' ολοκληρου απο Φιλιππινους.

[Nick the Greek]

Ακομα περισσοτερα απο το Reuters.