The APL Panama finally broke free from the sandy beach where it ran aground Christmas Day. It was 4:40 a.m. when the 874-foot container ship returned to the sea. Less than three hours later, the vessel was two miles offshore, undergoing inspection of its hull, while bulldozers worked to restore the beach where the ship spent the past 75 days. Under general average, the commonly used international legal procedure, the expenses will be shared by the vessel's German owners, Mare Britannicum Schiffahrtsgesellschaft MBH & Co.; APL, the global container transportation company that chartered it; and the numerous cargo interests. The amounts are subject to negotiation.