HM Coastguard tracking 33 containers lost in Pentland Firth
Weather related incidents have now led to two incidents of containers being lost overboard around the UK coastline.
As well as those lost in the Bristol Channel, 33 shipping containers are adrift in the Pentland Firth after being lost from a container ship on Saturday 31st October. Two of these 40-foot containers have been reported ashore in South Hoy, Orkney.
The Maritime & Coastguard Agency’s Counter Pollution team requested overflights of the areas where containers were still adrift, to assist in tracking and also to search for any that may have come ashore. Local shipping warnings continue to be issued by HM Coastguard to advise other vessel traffic in the areas affected.
Members of the public are urged to keep well clear of containers washed up ashore for their own safety and should be aware that contractors may be carrying out recovery work in the coming days.
Over the weekend, the Emergency Towing Vessel (ETV) Ievoli Black acted as a guard vessel in the Pentland Firth, and the Northern Lighthouse Board also assisted with the search. A coastguard aircraft conducted overflights of the area.
VMS Shipping Group from Werkendam, which manages the ship, says 32 of the containers are empty, according to World Today News.
“A container was loaded with consumer goods,” director Erik van der Wiel told World Today News. “We don’t know exactly what’s in there yet. In any case, not something that creates an environmental risk.”
De Francisca, owned by Longship BV from the city of Groningen, was on its way from Iceland to the port of Rotterdam. Off the Scottish coast, the ship ran into problems on Saturday night due to bad weather, says Van der Wiel.
“A storm caused high waves. As a result, water was probably flushed over the deck and the containers were knocked off board. Fortunately, the crew was unharmed and the ship itself was not badly damaged. It’s a dire situation, with a happy ending for the time being,” van der Wiel told World Today News.
Investigations will take place into how the load came loose. According to Van der Wiel, it cannot be because of the way in which the containers are attached to the ship.
“Everything is well established, and we have worked completely according to the rules.”
It’s difficult to see how this could be anything other than the way in which the containers were attached to the ship. The loss of containers from ships seems to happen frequently and they present a serious hazard for small boat operators and recreational sailors. Is it not time to have a serious review into the way containers are secured and carried on vessels.