Officials Preparing to Rescue Grounded Ship
Rescue workers are preparing to free the Kyeema Spirit, a 250-meter-long freighter stuck in the shallows just north of Tallinn.
At noon it was reported that officials were planning to free up the vessel on Tuesday and rescue workers were installing barriers along the island's shoreline and around the ship to protect against potential pollution, a job that should last a few hours. Weather conditions are currently fair.
The vessel became grounded 660 meters from a mooring area early on Monday after raising its anchor in severe weather to change locations, Jonathan Anthony, a representative of Teekay Shipping, the Canadian company that owns the ship, told Postimees.
Anthony said that the vessel was stable but had suffered some damage, the extent of which will evaluated by divers.
The bottom of the ship would normally extend eight meters below the surface of the water. Where the Kyeema Spirit currently rests, the depth is eight meters at the ship's stern and six meters at its bow.
Representatives from Teekay Shipping arrived at the scene on Monday and boarded the ship. The rescue operation will be conducted by the company.
Ivar Treffner, a specialist at the Police and Border Guard Board's maritime rescue center, said that the divers' work to examine damage would commence on Tuesday.
The ship could be freed as early as today, but nothing is certain yet, he said.
“They are not reporting their every step; it's the company's business. We will be informed in the case that something important emerges,” said Treffner.
“Experience has shown that this can take a lot of time, even weeks,” Treffner said, but added that it is in the interest of the company to free the vessel as soon as possible because every additional day will be costly.
Officials have reiterated that there is currently no threat of pollution or danger to the 24-member crew, which was still aboard as of Monday. The vessel is not carrying cargo other than its own fuel. It had initially been leaking bilge water, but that leakage was stopped shortly after the incident.
Nevertheless, the government committee investigating the case has classified it as a “very serious accident.” There has so far been no indication of a technical failure. Officials also said that bad weather could have played a role in the incident, with wind speeds of 16-18 meters per second where it occurred. The Estonian Maritime Administration said its traffic control center had observed the vessel and warned its crew repeatedly before the ship was grounded.
The Bahamian flagged tanker ran aground on a shoal to the east of Aegna island at 6:55 on Monday morning. An anti-pollution vessel and three tugboats were deployed to the site.
Although Estonian authorities have not requested assistance from neighboring countries, the Finnish and Swedish border patrols and environmental protection officials have been keeping a close eye on the situation, reported YLE.
A Swedish airplane conducted an observation flight over the area at 12:00 on Monday.
Since 2000, there have been 171 freight ship wrecks in the Gulf of Finland in addition to hundreds of wrecks each year involving smaller vessels.