Team to assess ship's damage

2005-06-08 10:11

A member of a rescue crew keeps an eye on the sinking ship, the Kiperousa, off Hamburg on the Eastern Cape coast. (Deon Ferreira, Die Burger)

East London - SA Maritime Authority officials are on their way to a stricken vessel that is stranded off the Eastern Cape coast, Sama said on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, the last of the crew of the Maltese log-carrier Kiperousa have been brought to safety.

The other crew members of the ship, which was on its way from Gabon to Durban, had on Tuesday been transferred to safety in a massive rescue operation.

After a period of trying to stabilise the vessel, the entire crew were eventually removed, the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) said.

NSRI spokesperson Craig Lambinon said the vessel appeared to be stuck either on a reef or a sand bank. It was believed to have struck an object two nautical miles offshore south of Hamburg on Tuesday. No further details were available.

Once the poor weather subsided, a salvage team would start removing fuel and oil and might try to re-float her.

There was no pollution at present.

- SAPA