A huge cargo ship has been left with a 13ft hole in its side after a hitting a concrete quay wall as it came into shore.
What happened?
The 656 ft-long vessel encountered difficulties while attempting to exit a narrow berth at the former King George V dry dock in Southampton, Hampshire.
The Florentia was being tugged back out to sea at slow speed when a gaping hole approximately 4 metres-long was torn on its side at 11.15am on Saturday morning.
The Maltese-flagged ship has been left needing repair work before going back out to sea.
Witness accounts:
Retired engineer and keen sailor Phil Kempsey, who often navigates around Southampton Water, listened on the marine radio which he uses to communicate with the port authority as one of the spotters warned: “You’re going to touch it a pilot.”
Unfortunately, the collision occurred, and Phil was able to capture the moment on video and on his camera which shows the resulting damage.’
The 67-year-old, from Hythe, Hants, said: “I have got a marine band radio as I sail on the water, so I know when tugs are being moved about, and I could hear them saying ‘you’re going to touch it, pilot’.”
“The old dry dock is being used to load bulk cargo, but the entrance is slightly narrower than the rest of the docks.”
“This ship can load 60,000 Tonnes of bulk cargo, and moves out from dock slowly at about 5mph, and it just touched the side and tore a hole in it.”
“I have got a dinghy and I go out photographing ships on Southampton Water, so I need the radio to keep in touch with the Port Authority.”
“At the time I believe the boat was loading up scrap metal in the dock, and now he’s had to move to a side berth.”
“There’s no way he could put it to sea – it’s too dangerous.”
Narrow basin:
The ship was parked up in the former dry dock, which was once a narrow basin in which water is allowed to flood or drain.
This allowed boats to be loaded or worked on before heading back out to sea, but the gates were removed some years ago and it remains a berth today.
The King George V graving dock was once the largest in the world, but container ships have grown so much in size that it can no longer cater for bigger ships.
Statement released:
A spokesperson for the Port of Southampton said: “I can confirm there was an incident with the MV Florentia making contact with a quay wall.”
“There were no injuries and there was no pollution as a result.”
“Port operations are continuing unaffected. An investigation into the incident is now underway.”
Disclaimer: This video is intended for informational purpose only. This may not be construed as a news item or advice of any sort. Please consult the experts in that field for the authenticity of the presentations.
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Source: The Sun
