Hugh Shaw News

A consortium of salvage companies have been appointed by the owners of the MV Priscilla, a cargo ship that ran aground off Caithness.The consortium, Multraship/Ardent/Wagenborg, have begun deploying equipment to the site on the Pentland Skerries.It is expected that an outline salvage plan will be prepared for discussion between key stakeholders and the Acting SOSRep, Hugh Shaw for approval. A Salvage Control Unit (SCU) will then be established near the incident.Acting SOSRep Hugh Shaw has established a Temporary Exclusion Zone of 500m around the incident site to ensure that there is no risk to the safety of persons engaged on the salvage operations and for other shipping traffic transiting or working in the area.

The Maritime & Coastguard Agency has made a new appointment to the role of Secretary of State’s Representative (SOSRep) Maritime Salvage & Intervention, which oversees the response to accidents at sea. Les Chapman has been appointed to the role and will join the Agency on Monday 21 August. He will work alongside the existing SOSRep Hugh Shaw OBE for several months, to allow a substantial transition period in this important role, and will not assume the role and responsibilities of the SOSRep until an agreed time later on in the year. The SOSRep is responsible for reducing the risk to safety and the environment arising from accidents at sea.

A team of eight salvors is now making its way on board the drilling rig Transocean Winner which is currently grounded off the Isle of Lewis. They’ll now be carrying out a full assessment of the rig and intend to work to make it habitable so that they can remain on it overnight. There’s also work being done to help provide a supply line for the team so they can get equipment and supplies on board. Rope access technicians have created a safe alternative access after the prevailing weather conditions made it too difficult to winch the team down to the installation. The team from Transocean and Smit will look at the diesel oil tanks looking…

No further pollution has been detected in the area of the grounded oil rig Transocean Winner as the U.K. Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) continues to monitor the scene. The MCA counter pollution surveillance aircraft yesterday flew over the location and surrounding area to make careful observations for pollution around the rig and the nearby coast and sea and no sheen or sign of pollution has been found. Teams from Smit Salvage and Transocean will continue inspections on board the rig this week and the rig remains in the original position.

Final preparations are being made to put a small team of salvors on board the grounded semi-submersible oil rig Transocean Winner off the Isle of Lewis this afternoon. The rig broke free from a tow line in severe weather Monday and ran aground off the western isles of Scotland. Salvors are conducting an initial assessment of the rig as part of the ongoing operation to remove it. "Weather permitting, it’s then intended to put a second larger group of salvors on tomorrow to carry out a more detailed inspection." Shaw said. Three vessels including the ETV Herakles remain on scene. A temporary exclusion zone of 300 meters has been implemented around the rig.

Severe weather has caused semi-submersible drilling rig Transocean Winner to break free from tow and run aground off the western isles of Scotland, the U.K. Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA) said. There are no personnel on board the rig and there is no risk to life, MCA said. There is 280mt of diesel on board. The tug Alp Forward encountered severe weather west of the Isle of Lewis while towing the Transocean Winner, and remained connected to the rig overnight on Sunday but was unable to make headway with the tow. The MCA’s Emergency Towing Vessel Herakles was deployed from Orkney on Sunday night to assist. Early Monday morning, the tow line parted, and due to the severe weather conditions it was not possible to reconnect.

More than 250 shipping and insurance professionals gathered for the first ever Asian Maritime Casualty Forum held during Singapore Maritime Week. The two-day conference, hosted by global marine and engineering consultancy London Offshore Consultants (LOC), highlighted some of the vital issues in salvage and vessel wreck removal and in particular rising costs, technological challenges and the need for the parties involved in major casualties to work more closely together. The industry…

The towing of the DFDS cargo vessel Lysblink Seaways began today at 1:00pm local time, the UK's Maritime Coast Guard Agency announced. The vessel ran aground at Ardnamurchan Point in northwest Scotland almost two weeks ago, and was moved to Scallastle Bay in the sound of Mull last Wednesday, the Aberdeen Press and Journal reported. A passage plan has been agreed to by Hugh Shaw, the Secretary of State’s representative, and covers the 150 nautical mile tow to Inchgreen, Greenock on the Firth of Clyde. “The tow will, where possible, take advantage of sheltered waters and will move through the Sound of Mull, Firth of Lorn, Sound of Jura and the North Channel before entering the Firth of Clyde," Shaw said.

Cargo ship Lysblink Seaways will be towed to Inchgreen, Greenock for repair work after grounding last month on Scotland’s west coast. The vessel, which ran aground February 18, was refloated and taken to Scallastle Bay in the Sound of Mull where Svitzer Salvage has a team on board to prepare Lysblink Seaways for her tow to the repair facility. According to the U.K Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA), a voyage passage plan is being finalized and, the tow may commence tomorrow, weather permitting.

Cargo ship Lysblink Seaways, which ran aground on Scotland’s west coast February 18, will be transported to shelter this afternoon after a successful ship-to-ship fuel oil transfer was performed yesterday, the U.K. Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) reported. The ship was refloated last week and anchored in Mingary Bay, though forecasts of bad weather led to a resolution to move the vessel into a more sheltered position. Hugh Shaw, the Secretary of State’s Representative for Maritime Salvage & Intervention has authorized the move, MCA said, adding the decision has the full support of the Scottish Environment Group and Marine Scotland. Eexpected to begin around 2 p.m.

The ship to ship transfer of the fuel oil from the grounded cargo ship Lysblink Seaways is scheduled to begin tomorrow morning as better weather conditions provide a work window between 3 a.m. and midday, the U.K. Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) reported. In total, 153 tons of fuel will be pumped from the Lysblink Seaways onto the tug Kingdom of Fife. “The wind is expected to moderate which means there is an opportunity to carry out this work,” Hugh Shaw, the Secretary of State’s Representative for Maritime Salvage & Intervention said.

The dive inspection on behalf of the salvors will continue today on the cargo ship Lysblink Seaways that ran aground Wednesday near Ardnamurchan Point in the west Highlands, and is now anchored close to the location of the grounding, the U.K. Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) reported. The 120-meter-long vessel is stable, though still leaking a small amount of oil, after self-floating just before 9 last night from the foreshore at Kilchoan. Plans are in place to continue to use an absorbent boom to collect any dispersing oil.

A major recovery operation has been launched to recover a leaking cargo ship which ran aground on Scotland's west coast. Salvage vessels were called to Kilchoan near Ardnamurchan Point after the Lysblink Seaways became stranded at around 2am on Wednesday. No one was injured in the stranding, but oil had begun to leak from the Seaways. The DFDS general cargo ship that ran aground off Scotland has self-refloated, the UK Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) said. “Shortly before 9pm on Thursday the grounded vessel Lysblink Seaways self-floated from the foreshore at Kilchoan,” it confirmed. A team from Svitzer Salvage is currently on board the vessel conducting a detailed damage assessment and two tugs are at the scene to support the salvage operation, MCA said.

Hoegh Osaka’s list is now at 5 degrees, enabling salvors to turn the vessel in the correct direction and transport it from Alpha Anchorage to Southampton Port. The ship is scheduled to arrive at Berth 101 at approximately 7 p.m. local time, the U.K Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) estimates. During the towing operation, a temporary restricted airspace will be placed 1 mile either side of the navigation route and up to 2,000 ft. There will also be an exclusion zone around the vessel of 1,000 meters ahead and behind and 100m either side. Officials will hold a press conference later tonight. Speaking will be Hugh Shaw, SOSREP, Bram Sperling from Svitzer…

Almost all member states were represented for this EMSA (European Maritime Safety Agency) maritime safety exercise, directed by Hugh Shaw, the UK SoSRep, which was hosted by the Port of Rotterdam, with a planning group drawn from Belgium, Bulgaria, Finland, France, Ireland, Malta and the Netherlands. The scenario for the exercise – ‘Ocean Traveller –  was the hypothetical collision between a tanker and a container vessel in the southern North Sea. During the exercise, participants had the opportunity to exchange views on reporting and coordinating the incident…

Titan Salvage refloated the 262-foot containership M/V Danio from its stricken position on England’s Northumberland coast despite challenging sea and weather conditions. Danio, which was carrying a load of timber and en route to Belgium from Scotland, ran aground at Farne Islands, an environmentally sensitive area, in early March. The onset of severe weather conditions prevented an immediate attempt to tow the Danio from the coastline. Because the Farne Islands – home to thousands of puffins and grey seals…

The 'MV Danio' has been successfully re-floated off the Farne Islands, off Northumberland, on the coast of NE England. Checks are still being made but so far there are no reports of any pollution, reports the Maritime and Coastguard Agency. At 04.30 on Saturday 16 March, the MV Danio reported to Humber Coastguard that they had run aground on the Farne Islands. Seahouses RNLI all-weather lifeboat attempted to tow the vessel off the rocks at high water but to no avail. Attempts to re-float the vessel were hampered by difficult weather conditions.

'Ciudad de Cadiz' blown off the berth to ground near Mostyn Harbour on the Salisbury Bank, River Dee in North Wales. The vessel had been berthed alongside in Mostyn Harbour when the mooring lines parted in 60 knot winds. She then drifted onto a sandbank. Another attempt to free the ship will be made at the next high tide. "We are closely monitoring the situation, but as there is no evidence of damage to the hull, the risk of pollution is very low," added Mr. Shaw.

A large container vessel ran aground in the Dover Strait on January 2, 2008, and has been successfully refloated. The LT Cortesia is a large container vessel which ran aground this morning on the Varne Bank while traveling through the Dover Strait. The vessel was refloated by three powerful tugs at high tide this evening and pulled stern first off the sand bank. The Coastguard Tug, Anglian Monarch has been on scene throughout the operation, available for any additional support if needed. The LT Cortesia has made her way to a safe anchorage in the Downs approximately 10 miles East of Dover where she will undergo inspections overnight and tomorrow.

The significance of Lloyd’s Form (LOF), will provide the focus for the International Salvage Union’s Associate Members’ Day conference in London on April 2. This theme was chosen as 2008 is LOF’s centenary year. Peter Lee, the ISU’s Vice-President, will provide an overview of salvage in the Far East. The morning programme also includes a paper marking LOF’s Centenary year. The Lloyd’s Form theme will continue with a presentation from ISU President Arnold Witte on “LOF and the defence of the marine environment.” This will examine, inter alia, the case for Environmental Salvage Awards. The conference then departs from its normal structure. The entire afternoon will be devoted to a major casualty simulation, concerning a challenging LOF salvage operation.

A major contract to remove the stern of the container vessel MSC Napoli has been awarded to the newly-established company Global Response Maritime B.V.,based in The Netherlands. The contract, placed by the vessel owners, calls for the clearance of a stern section with an estimated weight of around 3,800 tonnes. MSC Napoli became a casualty during a violent Channel storm in January 2007. The vessel was beached deliberately, in order to prevent her sinking in the English Channel. Subsequent operations, by other contractors, included recovery of bunkers, containers and the forepart of the ship. The work scope under the new contract involves the total removal of the stern, including main engine, together with delivery of all scrap to the recovery facility of Scheepssloperij Nederland B.V.

Hugh Shaw, the Secretary of States Representative for Maritime Salvage and Intervention (SOSREP) officially declared an end to the salvage and wreck removal operations of the MSC Napoli on Thursday 29th July 2009, 924 days after it all began. The MSC Napoli was beached at Branscombe on Saturday 20 January 2007 and since then there have been several salvage and wreck removal phases aimed initially at removing her fuel oil, then her cargo, and ultimately the wreck of the MSC Napoli itself.