U.S. Coast Guard officials have announced the reopening of the channel at Port Newark, one of the largest ports in the country, four days after a tragic fire claimed the lives of two experienced firefighters and left five others injured, as reported by NJ.
Port operations resume
A fire response operation is underway at a port, and officials have announced that port operations will return to normal on Monday morning. The closed roadways will also reopen. There are no immediate concerns about the capsizing of a large vessel involved, as crews are working to fully extinguish the blaze. The Unified Command’s main focus is to monitor and address hotspots on the ship. After the fire is extinguished, the authorities will shift their attention to investigating the incident and initiating salvage operations.
A significant danger
The duration of the Grande Costa D’Avorio’s stay in port following the fire response is currently unknown. Coast Guard officials have reported a decrease in the ship’s tilt from 4.9 degrees on Friday to a safer 2.1 degrees on Sunday. A tilt of 5 or 6 degrees would have posed a significant danger. The cause of the fire is still under investigation. Unfortunately, the incident resulted in the loss of two Newark firefighters, Augusto “Augie” Acabou and Wayne “Bear” Brooks Jr., who became trapped on the cargo ship after responding to the fire.
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Source: NJ
