Tag: New Zealand

Filter By:

Filter

New Rena threat emerges

Salvors have reported movement in the bow section Both sections of the Rena remain stuck on the Astrolabe Reef but there are increasing signs the wreck won't stay that way for long.Salvors have reported movement in the bow section as sea pressure inside the hollowed-out hull forces 50-tonne hatches to "pop off".And while the stern section remains perched near the top of the reef, there is a possibility that once underwater salvage operations begin it could slide further under.Maritime New Zealand salvage unit manager David Billington said container retrieval from the bow continues to be the salvors' priority, as they continue to hand-load much of the cargo from the ship.Only 35 containers remain on the top deck, with an additional 283 still in the hold below deck, but with every container removed the bow becomes lighter and is starting to move.Sea water rushing into the open hull is adding to the movement, as a pressure process called "hydraulicking" forces below-deck containers and the 50-tonne top-deck hatches to "pop off"."The salvage teams on board have reported the movement. They have noticed as they're taking weight off, the free parts are moving. This is just a piece of steel - it's been ...

Read more

About 500 containers from ship wrecked off New Zealand unlocated

Many of those containers could still be aboard the wreck of MV RENA About 500 cargo containers are unaccounted for after a Liberian-flagged cargo ship broke up after hitting a reef off the east of New Zealand's North Island, salvage experts said Wednesday.However, many of those containers could still be aboard the wreck of the 47,000-tonne Rena after it broke into two pieces 10 days ago, they said.Salvors resumed removing the containers from the wreck Wednesday, 10 days after they stopped due to the rough weather.Maritime New Zealand (MNZ), the country's shipping authority, said in a statement that an assessment of both sections of the vessel was continuing and removal of containers from the bow section was a priority.Before it broke up, 397 containers had been removed, but another 150 were estimated to have fallen into the sea during the bad weather, prompting MNZ to issue warnings to shipping in area last week.Richard van der Spoel, marine and distressed cargo specialist for Braemar Howells, the firm contracted to recover the containers, said that while about 500 containers were classified as "unlocated, " that did not mean they were on the seabed or floating in the sea.It was likely "a good ...

Read more

Dangerous diving work assessing wrecked Rena’s state

Dangerous work because of the surges of water through the broken structure Divers are working to assess the state of the wreck of the Rena after the sea conditions improved enough to enable them to enter the water.The cargo ship, which ran aground on Astrolabe Reef off Tauranga in early October, split into two sections in heavy seas more than a week ago and last Tuesday most of the stern section sunk.By yesterday, conditions had eased enough to enable divers to carry out preliminary underwater inspections around the Rena.Today, Maritime New Zealand (MNZ) said divers continued a full assessment of the state of the wreck, including its stability on the reef and general condition.That work was the first stage in working out what to do next."It's extremely challenging and dangerous work because of the surges of water through the broken structure and the vast amount of torn steel and other debris," MNZ national on-scene commander Rob Service said.For safety reasons divers would not be entering the ship's holds yet.Meanwhile, the Braemar Howells container recovery team intended to inspect three containers submerged off Matakana Island this week to try to identify them and check their condition.The focus of clean-up work this ...

Read more

Aircraft to assist in crew evacuation

Crew evacuation on board the Korean fishing vessel Jeong Woo A United States Airforce (USAF) C17 Globemaster III aircraft will leave Christchurch tonight to help recover seven crew injured in a fire on board the Korean fishing vessel Jeong Woo 2 in the Ross Sea early on Wednesday morning (NZDT).The Rescue Coordination Centre New Zealand (RCCNZ) is currently working with a range of agencies to help facilitate the recovery of the seven injured men from the Korean vessel back to New Zealand for hospital treatment.RCCNZ Search and Rescue Mission Coordinator Greg Johnston said attempts were being made to get a team, including Vietnamese and Indonesian interpreters, on board the aircraft, which was already on a scheduled flight due to leave Christchurch about 9.30pm today."Weather permitting, it's expected that the USAF aircraft will get to McMurdo base about 2am tomorrow (Friday), arriving about the same time as the American research vessel Nathaniel B Palmer, which is currently making her way through the ice with the seven injured crew on board."The rescue mission is, however, dependent on the weather and sea conditions, with fog at McMurdo currently causing poor visibility. However, a back up aircraft, a LC 130 Hercules based at McMurdo, ...

Read more

Rena Owner Will Continue to Pay for Salvage

Costamare reaffirms pledge as salvage effort enters costlier phase Costamare, the Greek shipping company that owns the wrecked Rena, reassured New Zealanders that it will continue to fund the salvage operation as it moves into a more difficult, costly phase now that the container ship has broken up.The recovery and clean-up mission stepped up several notches in the recent days when the vessel, which has been grounded on a reef in the Bay of Plenty off the Port of Tauranga since Oct. 5, snapped in two in high swells over the weekend.The stern section sank on Tuesday, taking with it 400 containers which will now need to be salvaged by teams of specialist saturation divers at a daily cost of $150,000.Costamare issued a media release saying the company and its insurers will continue to fund the salvage operation, "including the recovery and processing of containers washed overboard." It said it is working with the salvors, insurers and Maritime New Zealand to formulate a plan dealing with both sections of the wreck."These plans are to be discussed with government authorities and other experts in the field, to ensure minimum damage to the environment and disruption to the lives of those living ...

Read more

Hong Kong ship arrested over dispute in New Zealand

After dispute between two Middle East companies A Hong Kong-owned cargo ship has been detained in New Zealand's eastern North Island port of Napier after becoming embroiled in a dispute between two Middle East companies, the Dominion-Post newspaper reported Wednesday.The 16,860-tonne Sheng Mu was boarded and "arrested" by a bailiff on December 5 under an order from the High Court at Auckland.Operated by Hong Kong-based Fenwick Shipping Services, the vessel arrived in Napier on January 2 and discharged fertilizer.It was due to leave for the port of Tauranga Tuesday, said the report.Fenwick's Australian director, Chris Rabbidge, told the newspaper his company was "an innocent party in a dispute between a couple of Middle Eastern companies who moved cargo on this ship a while ago."Rabbidge said the arrest was "entirely unwarranted and, we contend, illegal"."It is part of a dispute between Tradelines LLC, Dubai, (which is) part of the Saif Al Ghurair Group, and Golden Waves FZC, of the United Arab Emirates," he was quoted as saying."Fenwick Shipping of Hong Kong, as manager of the Sheng Mu, urges both parties to settle their dispute without involving an innocent third party and for Tradelines to honor their commitments to the owners."Auckland High ...

Read more

How to clean an oil-slicked penguin

After MV Rena oil spill, volunteers respond to clean penguins Biologist Jeremy Gray is among those volunteering at the Oiled Wildlife Response Centre in Tauranga, New Zealand, after the Rena oil spill. He explains how to clean rescued wildlife.I got put on the wildlife team as I am a biologist in real life. I'm "nurse" to the vets here - handing them equipment, cleaning stuff and such like - while they wash the birds. On Wednesday there were four vets and two nurses, and hopefully more tomorrow.The response centre has been set up at a wastewater treatment plant that can handle up to 500 birds.First the penguins must be warm and happy. Most are kept overnight before washing, as it is very stressful and they need to get their strength up.Then the birds are brought into the cleaning room and put on the table.Volunteers knit jumpers to keep rescued birds warm Normally detergent is used to clean wildlife caught in an oil slick.But the fuel oil that's spilled from the Rena is really thick, so we first rinse the birds with canola oil, sold as cooking oil at the supermarket. This helps soften the fuel oil and get off the ...

Read more

Debris from wrecked cargo ship washes onto NZ beaches

Timber, plastic and dozens of sacks of milk powder washed ashore Shipping containers, sacks of milk powder and other debris washed onto popular New Zealand beaches on Monday after a cargo ship stuck on an offshore reef for three months started breaking apart in heavy seas at the weekend.The 47,230-tonne Liberian-flagged Rena, grounded for three months on Astrolabe Reef, finally broke in two about 22 km off Tauranga on the east coast of New Zealand on Sunday after being pounded by waves of up to 6 metres (20 feet).Maritime authorities and salvage crews have tried to remove fuel oil and containers from the ship, which ran aground in calm conditions on Oct 5. But fuel and cargo continued to leak in rough seas, causing New Zealand's worst environmental disaster in decades.At least five containers had washed ashore at Waihi Beach, a popular spot for holiday makers, Maritime New Zealand spokesman Bruce Fraser said."There are a lot of containers and debris in the water and washing up on the beaches," he said. An oil sheen was spreading 3kms (1.8 miles) from the stricken vessel and small amounts of oil was washing up on nearby islands and beaches, he added.Timber, plastic and ...

Read more

Stern of wrecked cargo ship sinking off New Zealand

Zealand's worst maritime environmental disaster The stern of the Rena slipped under the water after heavy seas split the vessel in two over the weekendThe stern of a stricken cargo ship which ploughed into a reef off New Zealand's coast three months ago is sinking into the ocean, officials say.They say most of the stern of the Greek-owned Rena - which broke in two at the weekend - has slipped off the reef and is now submerged.The bow section remains upright and wedged on the reef.The Rena has leaked large amounts of fuel in what was New Zealand's worst maritime environmental disaster."The foremost part of the stern was still sticking up out of the water, with the rest - including the bridge - submerged," Maritime New Zealand said in a statement on Tuesday.The agency's spokesman James Sygrove described the situation as "fluid", adding that the authorities remained unsure of what would happen next, the Associated Press news agency reports.Official fear that the sinking of the stern could further complicate salvage efforts.Some 150 cargo containers with milk powder and timber have spilled into the ocean since the 236-metre (775ft) vessel snapped in two, after being pounded by waves of up to ...

Read more
Page 24 of 30 1 23 24 25 30