Displaying items by tag: Port & Shipping News

17th September 2012

Hazardous Cargo Containers Drifing Towards Ireland

PORT & SHIPPING NEWS - A number of hazardous containers believed to have fallen from a cargo ship this summer are drifting towards Ireland's southwest coast, the Irish Examiner reports.

The containers are said to have slipped from the deck of the MSC Flaminia, a German-registered cargo vessel which caught fire on 14 July in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, with the loss of two crew and forcing the rest to abandon ship.

The vessel had been en route from North Carolina in the United States to Brememhaven in northern Germany when the incident occurred.

Among the thousands of containers it was carrying were 149 classed as 'dangerous goods', their exact nature not yet confirmed, and it is thought some of these are among the containers that fell into the sea and went missing as the ship listed in mid-ocean.

As reported by the Maritime Bulletin, there was some speculation as to whether the missing containers slipped off deck or were jettisoned.

The containers have since appeared in the main cargo shipping lanes off the southwest coast, posing a danger to transatlantic vessels.

Operations have already begun to retrieve the containers and tow them into Castletownbere in West Cork.

The Irish Examiner has more on the story HERE.

Published in Ports & Shipping

Tagged under

Start
Prev
1
2
Next
End

Page 2 of 2

About the Royal Yachting Association (RYA) Northern Ireland

The RYA is the national body for dinghy, yacht and motor cruising, all forms of sail racing, RIBs and sports boats, windsurfing and personal watercraft and a leading representative for inland waterways cruising.

The RYA is recognised by Government, the media and opinion formers as the representative body and voice for the activities that it represents. It continually fights for the rights and freedoms of its 112,000 personal members.

The RYA has more than 1,500 affiliated clubs and classes, which represent some 350,000 boaters throughout the UK. It is estimated that 4 million people in the UK take part in boating activity annually.

The RYA also sets and maintains recognised standards for training for both leisure and commercial boating through a network of more than 2,400 RYA Recognised Training Centres across 58 countries. More than 250,000 people per year complete RYA training courses.

The RYA is responsible for one of the UK’s most successful Olympic medal-winning sports. Our coaching and development schemes actively support 800 of our country’s top sailors, from talented juniors to Olympic and World champions.

The RYA is committed to promoting all forms of boating and making them accessible to everyone. For more information please visit www.rya.org.uk.

The Royal Yachting Association Northern Ireland (RYA NI) acts for the RYA in Northern Ireland (NI) and the Chairman of RYA NI is invited to join the Irish Sailing Association (ISA) Policy Review Committee.

You can find the RYA Northern Ireland at Sketrick House, GE8, Jubilee Road, Newtownards, BT23 4YH.

RYA NI is a company limited by guarantee – Registration number NI 51945

Contact RYA NI: Tel: 02891 827154 email: [email protected]