Tsavliris Salvage has salvaged two ships that collided off Kythira Island, Greece in a busy week for salvors
A fleet of tugs was deployed on 13 March to assist two damaged bulk carriers following their collision. Kiveli is thought to have struck Afina I with its bow, causing a hull breach and water ingress. Kiveli, loaded with 36,100 tonnes of fertiliser, was sailing from Casablanca, Morocco to Varna, Bulgaria when it collided with Afina I, which was en route with 12,069 tonnes of iron ore cargo from Novorossiysk, Russia to Bilbao, Spain.
Salvors Tsavliris were contracted under Lloyd’s Open Form (LOF) by the owners of Kiveli to provide salvage assistance.
MedTugs, a joint venture involving Vernicos, Lyboussakis and Spanopoulo, signed the LOF with the owners of Afina I .
They unlocked the two casualties and towed them to safe areas.
Tsavliris said it mustered a fleet of tugs and all necessary facilities, divers and salvage personnel to undertake this task.
On 14 March, the vessels were moved by tugs in locked condition to Vatika Bay, off Elafonisos island, Peloponnese to be separated safely.
On 28 March, these vessels were successfully separated without any environmental pollution. Kiveli was anchored safely at Vatika Bay with the assistance of tugs, said Tsavliris. Underwater inspections were carried out by divers to assess the damage.
Also in the eastern Mediterranean region, an ultra-large container ship sustained serious hull damage when it struck a pier. MSC Tina struck the harbour infrastructure at Ambarli Port, Turkey on 27 March, according to the Turkish Maritime General Directorate. This 398-m box ship was damaged on the port side as it manoeuvred to its berth. There were no injuries to the crew and no environmental incident, but the pier was damaged and the Liberia-flagged ship was taken to an anchorage to the west of Istanbul for inspection.
In Taiwan, an Evergreen-operated ultra-large container ship, Ever Gentle, suffered damage during loading operations. On 27 March, the 2019-built box ship’s funnel was crumpled by a gantry crane in Taipei Port. After two hours, the crane and funnel were separated and the Liberia-flagged ship was sailed to Yantian, China, according to Fleetmon.
This accident happened less than a week after an Evergreen-operated sister ship, Ever Given, grounded in the Suez Canal on 23 March, blocking transit through the vital maritime highway.
Dutch and Japanese salvors, working with Egypt’s Suez Canal Authority, managed to free the 20,000-TEU box ship more than six days after the vessel grounded and blocked all traffic on the global shipping lane that connects the Mediterranean Sea with the Indian Ocean. Ever Given was refloated with the assistance of up to 15 tugs and dredgers, and taken to Great Bitter Lake for assessment on 29 March.
In Italy there were two maritime accidents from 25-29 March involving four ships.
General cargo ship Baskop with a cargo of soda struck moored cargo ship Cileen M at Marghera Port, in Venice, Italy on 29 March. This manoeuvring accident damaged Baskop’s stern, which will require repairs.
Off the coast of Ravenna, Italy, general cargo ship Bergfjord collided with a fishing boat in the Adriatic Sea on 25 March. Four fishermen were rescued after the fishing vessel sank.
Fishermen in China were less lucky after their vessel was struck by a cargo ship on 27 March. Feng Yan 68 hit fish carrier Feng Hai 78 off Ningde, Fujian Province, while transporting 900 tonnes of steel. Of the seven crew on Feng Hai 78, only one was rescued and six were missing as search and rescue operations continued.
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