Company hires contractor in effort to recover overboard containers off B.C.
The Transportation Safety Board says it is gathering information on the incident and assessing the scope of the investigation it may conduct.
The Canadian Coast Guard says the owner of a ship that lost 109 containers overboard in stormy weather last week has hired a contractor to try to recover the bins loaded with cargo.
It says in a statement that a salvage team was using thermal cameras to find remaining hot spots on the MV Zim Kingston after some of the containers caught fire last weekend. Active firefighting operations continued on Oct. 28 in containers that hold tires, it said.
Five containers have been spotted at the very northern tip of Vancouver Island, more than 400 kilometres away, but two containers carrying hazardous materials were not among them. The coast guard says trajectory modelling shows the containers that were still floating will continue to drift north.
Cargo in the containers include industrial and car parts, Christmas decorations, sofas, poker tables, clothing, toys, yoga mats, stand-up paddle boards and other everyday items.
The coast guard said air samples taken along the Greater Victoria waterfront show no negative effects from the ship.
“Once the initial response to the MV Zim Kingston is complete, the Transportation Safety Board may conduct an investigation into the incident, including why the ship lost containers during the storm and why some of the remaining containers caught on fire. Right now the highest priority continues to be putting the fires out and ensuring the remaining containers are secure before the ship is moved to port for unloading.”
The Transportation Safety Board says it is gathering information on the incident and assessing the scope of the investigation it may conduct.
Darrell Wilson, a spokesman for Danaos, which manages the ship, said the master of the vessel ordered the evacuation of 16 members while he and other key personnel remained on board to try and put out a fire among some of the containers. Danaos commissioned a team of marine firefighters to ensure conditions were appropriate for the safe return of the vessel’s crew, he said.
