SHIPPING DISASTER "NAPOLI" off Sidmouth January 2007
NAPOLI update FRIDAY JULY 20th 2007.
After several attempts Fridays detonation operation has sucessfuly split the MSC Napoli in two.Now the ship is in two pieces the bow section will be towed and anchored in a safe position.With the controlled operation the Salvage team have had plenty of time to prepare and minimise the damage to the enviroment and the public safety.
"AND FINALLY" THE END OF THE "NAPOLI" on the Lyme Bay Coastline
The "Napoli" is RE - FLOATED on MONDAY 9th JULY 2007 and will be moved away.
THE NAPOLI 12 JULY 2007
"MSC NAPOLI is declared unfit to FLOAT"
MSC NAPOLI has been declared unfit to float - the ship is likely to be cut up on site.
The MARITIME SALVAGE company highlighted the fact that the wreck is in a worse state of deterioration than previously thought.On this basis the vessel is incapable of being towed.We will cut up the vessel on site however there is a risk that it could sink in the process.
As we enter this new phase of the operation our concerns are with wildlife and the impact and livelyhoods of local fisherman and the tourist industry.
Monday 22 January 2007 NAPOLI beached ship near Salcombe Regis-Branscombe Bay SIDMOUTH DEVON.
Tourism and Enviromental workers are expressing grave concerns at the beached vessel with difficult access to the ship up to 200 tonnes of oil in a raptured tank has leaked into the sea on this World Heritage Coastline and Devon's wildlife where the ship is beached include guillimots,ravorbills and flocks of sea ducks including common scoter.Some sea birds have already been found covered with oil.The enviroment agency said booms have now been put into place to prevent damage to wildlife including the Axe Estuary Devon.
Mr Ian Stewart whom runs the cruises along the World Heritage Coastline has grave concerns about the impact of the incident on his business.Devon County Council said its emergency teams are helping in the cleaning up and rigorous plans were in place and practised regulary for such incidents.
Crowds are still flocking Sidmouth seafront trying to see the stricken vessal and the footpaths on the coastline have become hazardous as so many people and the recent rain has made access difficult.Access to the scene is across narrow footpaths and farmland at Salcombe Regis on this wonderful Devon Countryside that will make this rescue operation difficult.
Devon Police are issuing people at the scene forms which they must fill in if they are trying to rescue items from the stricken vessel on the beach.
Under the Merchant Shipping Act 1955 it is an offence to keep, conceal or not give back to the authorities and keep in your possession what you have found on the beach or in the sea from this shipwreck here at the scence of our EAST DEVON COASTLINE.
Containers and articles can clearly be seen floating in the sea whilst teams are to pump off the oil aboard Napoli.
SUNDAY 21 JANUARY 2007
The ship wreck disaster off the Devon coast continues the ship has been towed from the view of the well known holiday resort of Sidmouth Devon out of sight from its beach to Salcombe Regis not quite made it to Branscombe Bay now its evident that some of its cargo has spilled into the sea and the ship has tipped well over revealing a hazardous cargo may slip into the English Channel you can see oil substance now clearly in the sea and no eividence of the boom that was in place Saturday.Some cargo is drifting in the sea towards Branscombe Bay and Lyme Regis and the sunny day of Saturdays disaster are long gone with the waether now turning bad at Sunday 21 January lunchtime makes you wonder how the Maritime and Coastguard agencies will cope with off loading this cargo in this stretch of Devon countryside well away from ports like Plymouth and Portland and tiny Devon country lanes and footpaths to the beach.
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Coastguard and Antipollution teams are on standby at the scene at Devons world heritage coastline where the MSC NAPOLI is currently being held in place by two french coastguard tugs and using the high tide to edge the wreck into protected area nearby to Salcombe Regis and Branscombe Bay between Lyme Bay Lyme Regis Devon and Sidmouth's well known holiday resort.Devon Police have been called in to ensure the general public do not interfere with 40 foot crates from the wreck some of which hold BMW motorcycles. Chris Lawson of the enviroment agency said there was little chance of the pesticides and hazardous substances would leak out as they are at the bottom of the vessel.
The MSC NAPOLI was last passed by the Shipping Inspectors in MAY 2005.
SIDMOUTH WEBSITE its local its in SIDMOUTH DEVON. COPYRIGHT JANUARY 2007.
DEVON NEWS arrives on the doorstep of Sidmouth Devon coastline on SATURDAY 20 January 2007 It a very bright sunny day here in Sidmouth when there's gossip in town a cargo vessel that run into trouble days ago in the violent storms where man risked their lives to rescue the 20 man crew,today Saturday 20 January 2007 its being towed by Maritime and Coastguard agencies along the Devon coastline towards Portland.
The seafront is by this time like the holiday season its full of towns people and sightseers who have heard on the radio the news that the vessel is in trouble and will break up if it carries onto Portland, Cameras and press are arriving taking photos of the Cargo Vessel in sight from Sidmouth's seafront.
A police control centre is set up and the East Devon Council response emergency team is in place with talk of pollution as the MSC NAPOLI a british registered ship has around 150 hazardous substances amongst it 2,394 containers.Large cracks on both sides of the ship worsened during the night.
The decision is made by the enviroment agency that with storm gale force winds are due again today Saturday night that the tugs will keep the ship well supported off the Devon coastline our Sidmouth esplanade until Sunday when they will endeavour to put the vessel close by to Branscombe Devon's beach.
Then location was selected to minimise the impact of any spillage and to enable salvage work to start.
We made the decision it was better to keep the ship in one piece and to beach the ship and to commerce the salvage operation by removing all the pollutants.
The 275 metre 900 foot vessel NAPOLI registered on LONDON and owned by the Swiss Mediterranean Shipping Company developed two long holes along each side of the vessel just above its waterline in stormy seas on thursday last week.
We await for it to be beached at Branscombe Bay near Sidmouth Devon during Sunday 21 January 2007.
You have seen the NEWS HEADLINES looters take over the Devon Beach now its a mamouth task for the agencies to clear up our beautiful Devon Beaches and secure the future of our World Heritage Coastline and our DEVON WILDLIFE and our Sid Vale Enviroment.
THANK YOU TO PAUL DURIEZ Sidmouth's Local Professional Photographers.
Additional photographs courtesy of kind permission of Paul Duriez Photography in Sidmouth Devon Editor of the SIDMOUTH MAGAZINE-Sidmouth & EastDevon Life.The magazine is produced here on the scene in Sidmouth and distributed around the EAST DEVON area.
Wednesday 24 January 2007
Locals are questioning the authorities how it took so long to get the beauty spot of Branscombe Beach in Devon under control.More than a 1000 wildlife birds have been rescued so far covered in oil and taken to a sanctuary in Somerset for treatment and care.Salvage teams to continue to pump off the oil into nearby tankers.
The ship lies helplessly beached here on the Devon beach it may be some considerable time to move the remaining cargo and rescue salvage teams to bring this Devon beauty spot back to its former glory.All this Devon coastline is a well known holiday destination for thousands every year.
June 2007
MSC Napoli UPDATE Devon authorities applaud as last container is removed from the MSC Napoli. Devon authorities have applauded the work of the salvage crew onboard the stricken MSC Napoli as the last of the 2,318 containers is lifted from the vessel today, well ahead of schedule. The Secretary of State's Representative (SOSRep), Robin Middleton, will now turn his attention to removal of the vessel itself and is considering a number of options for its disposal.
Devon authorities including Devon County Council, East Devon District Council and the Environment Agency have welcomed news of reaching this significant milestone. Councillor Margaret Rogers, Devon County's Executive Member for Environment and local resident of Branscombe said:
"This is excellent news and our thanks are extended to the hard work, and brave work, of the salvage crew who have executed the onboard recovery operations so well.
"The events that unfolded just four months ago have served to remind us how vulnerable and precious our environment is and also how important it is to our economy. Events could have been disastrous but weren't, thanks to their work, and that of all the agencies involved with the recovery.
"In many ways this has been a test case where the focus has been on containers rather than oil pollution. We believe that lessons can be taken from this incident to help inform and influence contingency plans for future incidents."
Councillor Mike Green, who represents Beer and Branscombe on East Devon District Council, said:
"I cannot speak too highly of the professionalism and dedication shown by the unseen heroes of this whole operation - the salvage crews.
"This incident had the potential to cause major problems for the tourism and fishing industry along the East Devon coastline. In the event, people's worst fears were never realised.
"It would be fair to say that we have been lucky in that the wind and tides have been kind to us, but that does not detract in any way from the superb job the Maritime and Coastguard Agency have done, but in particular the salvage teams.
"Of course there are still some containers on the sea-bed and I would hope that we can rely on the continuing assistance of salvage teams to clear any debris that may be washed ashore in the coming weeks and months."
We now await and see how much longer it will be in view of the tourists visting Sidmouth Esplanade now the Summer Season is here.
With plans being considered for a development at "PORT ROYAL" to be known as "PORT ROYAL MARINA" with around 187 mooring berths which has been reduced from the original plans for Sidmouth Devon.
"NAPOLI" JULY 2007 Salvagers set the Date of JULY 2nd 2007.
Dutch Salvage Company SMITT INTERNATIONAL bring in pumps to start re-floating the 62,000 tonne vessel.
With 24 hours of pumping it is hoped to re-float the vessel and subject to weather conditions.
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