The captain of a huge cargo ship deliberately ran aground in one of southern England’s busiest harbor areas to save the vessel from possibly capsizing, officials said on Sunday.
The Hoegh Osaka, bound for Germany with 1,400 cars, beached on the submerged Bramble Bank, a well-marked hazard lying between the major container port of Southampton and access to the open sea beyond the Isle of Wight.
The 51,000-tonne, Singapore-registered vessel was stranded at a 45° angle on the sandbank and quickly became a local attraction.
Photo: Reuters
Experts were assessing how to salvage the ship and to minimize any environmental impact on the busy waters. The 25 crew members aboard the 180m ship were rescued soon after it beached at about 9:30pm on Saturday.
“The crew who were on board the car carrier Hoegh Osaka have all now been accounted for,” the UK Maritime and Coast Guard Agency said. “Some were airlifted off the ship by coast guard helicopter and others were rescued from the sea by the three lifeboats.”
Despite several injuries, none of the crew’s lives were in danger.
Hoegh Autoliners chief executive Ingar Skiaker said the grounding had been a last resort to avoid a worse disaster.
“Our vessel developed a severe list shortly after she left port and the pilot and the master took the decision to save the vessel and its crew by grounding her on the bank. This showed great skill and seamanship on behalf of our crew when faced with such challenging circumstances,” he said. “Our chief concern now is to ensure there is no environmental damage from this incident. There is no oil spill reported at this point however we understand that the UK authorities have brought their spill response to a state of active readiness.”
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