A cargo ship full of broken glass which ran aground near Margate Harbour in Kent narrowly missed a statue by artist Sir Antony Gormley.
Dover Coastguard received reports that The Islay Trader, a 75-metre vessel, had dragged anchor and run aground shortly after 3am on Sunday.
The Bermudan-flagged ship became stuck between 30-50 metres from shore, next to the Gormley sculpture.
The ship’s fuel tanks were not damaged and the risk to the environment from pollution was assessed as very low.
The vessel, which was travelling to Antwerp, Belgium, where its cargo was set to be recycled, has now been refloated with the help of a tug.
A Coastguard spokeswoman said: “At 2.20pm the Maritime and Coastguard Agency reported that the Islay Trader had been successfully refloated at high water with the aid of a tug, and towed to deeper water.”
“The vessel will now conduct a survey to assess its suitability for onward passage to Belgium, where it will offload its cargo and then enter a dry dock in order to conduct a full inspection.”
The Gormley statue is one of three loaned by the artist to the Folkestone Triennial arts festival from his Another Time series of 100 solid cast-iron figures which have been exhibited around the world.
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Source: Sky News
