A salvage team is trying to remove 500 tons of bunker fuel and an undisclosed volume of ammonia nitrate from 125m cargo vessel Ultra Galaxy that ran aground on the west coast on July 10.
The 18 crew of the Panama-flagged ship were all rescued from a life raft by a passing hake-longliner. But the hard work of salvaging the vessel remains, with the clock ticking while waves pound the ship on a sandbank south of Brand se Baai. “Expert salvage teams are now on site conducting a survey of the surrounding areas and the vessel,” the South African Maritime Safety Authority said in a press update on July 12th.
“All efforts are currently focused on preparing the equipment that will allow salvors to access the vessel once the heavy weather subsides. Pollution clean-up teams are already working on removing flotsam from the beaches. Additionally, SAMSA has issued a Navigation Warning to all ships in the area to be on the lookout for any flotsam, as these may present a danger to navigation.”
“The vessel has a full load of fertilizer in bags on board and also contains low sulphur bunkering fuel in addition to hydraulic and related oils.”
SAMSA has also issued a navigational alert after a 450m container vessel lost 44 containers overboard due to the adverse weather. Some of the containers have been spotted near Port Shepstone on the east coast. “SAMSA has been assured by the vessel’s owners that none of the lost containers contain dangerous goods,” the statement said.