MSC Napoli, the 62,000 tonne container ship that ran aground off the Devon coast six months ago, was successfully refloated yesterday.
The shipwreck sparked a “goldrush”in the immediate aftermath of the incident in January as containers were washed ashore and looted by people claiming salvage rights. But then the site was made secure, and the genuine salvage operation began.
More than 2,000 containers had to be lifted off the deck and out of the hold of the ship, and all the fuel oil from its bunkers cleared before the final operation to move the ship could begin.
Just after dawn yesterday the final operation, to pump 58,000 tonnes of seawater from her hull, began. During the operation, two tonnes of oil leaked into the sea from one of the holds, and was dispersed.
The Napoli was finally able to float free of the sandbank where she was deliberately beached when her hull threatened to fail in a violent storm in January. She was then towed into deeper water by a giant tug.
Now divers will assess the state of the ship's hull before it is decided whether to tow her to port for repairs, break her up and remove her in pieces, as take her into deeper water and sink her.
The latter may be the only realistic option if her structure is too damaged for her to be towed safely.
Mike Clark, of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, said there were several options for dealing with the ship, “all of which present problems and opportunities.”
The weather would be “a driving factor” in deciding her fate, he added.
“Whether it is a case of cutting her up, taking her to another port or another method will become clear in the next few days. We cannot tell anything until the survey has been completed. But if there is no structural integrity, she cannot go far,” he said.
Greenpeace is very concerned about the impact on the marine environment of the disposal of the ship. Spokesman Paul Johnston said: “The end of this operation will be when this vessel is either towed to a port or dismantled at sea and disposed of in separate pieces.
“What cannot be allowed to take place is for them to just sink it at sea. That would set an appalling and unacceptable precedent.”
The MCGA said the cost of the salvage operation was likely to come to £50 million, and the bill would be met by insurers for the ship's owners, Mediterranean Shipping Company.
