- The salvage crews began cutting apart the capsized Golden Ray.
- It is a shipwreck the size of a 70-story office building with 4,200 cars within its cargo decks.
- It has been predicted the demolition could be wrapped up by New Year’s Day but it is far from completion.
A recent news published in the Wabe website brings out how a capsized ship is yet to be demolished and removed.
What did the salvage experts decide?
Salvage experts decided more than a year ago that the Golden Ray, measuring 656 feet (199 meters) long, was too big to remove intact.
They settled on a plan to carve the ship into eight massive chunks, each weighing up to 4,100 tons (3,720 metric tonnes).
The first cut in November
The first cut began Nov. 6 and took three weeks. Lifting the ship’s bow section revealed battered cars and SUVs in neat, layered rows on the interior decks.
The second cut started a month later, on Christmas Day, and was finished in a week.
Ship’s steel is tougher
The ship’s steel has proven tougher than anticipated, slowing the process, and crews have taken pauses to perform extra inspections and maintenance, said Coast Guard Petty Officer 2nd Class Michael Himes, a spokesman for the multiagency command overseeing the demolition.
What did the wreck site commander insisted upon?
Ironically, wreck site commanders insisted on removing the ship in large chunks because it was supposed to be faster.
A year ago, the command fired its original salvage contractor for wanting to dismantle the ship in smaller pieces, saying it would take too long.
The jilted firm sued in federal court, but a judge refused to halt the salvage after agreeing there was no time to waste.
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Source: Wabe
