More attempts to free ship
2003-08-24 21:52
Cape Town - The Sealand Express, which ran aground about 200 metres from the coast at Sunset Beach, Milnerton, will hopefully be freed from the sand bank on which it is resting by the end of the week when the next spring tide is expected.
About 1 500 tons of the 3 700 tons shipping fuel aboard the stranded freighter had been pumped from the ship by Sunday afternoon in an attempt to make the ship light enough to lift it from the sand bank.
Clare Gomes, spokesperson for the salvaging company Smit Marine, said an Mi-5 Russian helicopter was expected to arrive in the Cape from Gauteng on Monday to help to remove some of the hazardous cargo from the ship.
She said that the helicopter would start lifting cargo from the freighter by Wednesday, weather permitting. The cargo is being packed and sealed in special steel drums under the supervision of experts.
Evelyn Holtzhauzen, spokesperson for the company that manages the ship, said a chemical expert aboard was monitoring the cargo and that it didn't pose a risk to salvaging personnel or the ship's crew at this stage.
The department of environmental affairs has cordoned off an 800 metres area round the ship and members of the public are not allowed inside this area to protect the ecology of the nearby dunes.