A cargo ship is adrift this morning outside Figueira da Foz harbour, ‘at risk of sinking’.
The 89-metre Eikborg, flying the Dutch flag, has lost its rudder, reportedly from hitting the accumulation of sand outside the port. It is navigating in reverse in a bid to stay afloat, vice-president of Figueira da Foz’s ports community Paulo Mariano has said – but time is running out in that conditions at sea are worsening.
Tug-boats have been summoned ‘to the rescue’ from Leiria – but they have to come from a distance as Figueira da Foz has none available.
In Paulo Mariano’s words, this is a “storm of storms”: the cargo ship has to try and stay afloat until help arrives. “If it starts taking on water in the engine room, it is likely to sink. We are on the verge, and I’m not exaggerating, of a tragedy,” he told Lusa just before 11 this morning.
Figueira da Foz port ‘closed’ due to accumulation of sand
As it is, the closest port for any tugboat managing to reach the Eikborg is closed. Technically, Figueira da Foz should be open to cargo ships (even in adverse weather conditions) – but as the Eiborg lost its rudder by hitting an accumulation of sands at the entrance to the port, other ships are being cautious.
In the words of Paulo Mariano: “The pilots (who guide ships in and out of the commercial port) say they don’t know what the bar (the sand built up outside the port) is like and aren’t moving anything (…) So the port of Figueira da Foz has closed. The port that serves the economy of the Central Region has closed. This is a matter, as they used to say in the old days, of treason,” he suggests.
There has never been the quantity of sand allowed to accumulate as it has outside the port, explains the ports captain – blaming the situation on dredging operations that have taken place elsewhere along the coastline.
In Paulo Mariano’s mindset, this is a situation for the Public Prosecutor’s Office.
In the meantime, an 89-metre cargo ship loaded with cellulose pulp is suffering the consequences – and may not survive them.
UPDATE TUESDAY: Negotiations through the night have seen a Norwegian tug boat take responsibility for this rescue, which is still far from being effected. To make matters worse, Paulo Mariano has told Antena 1 this morning that no Portuguese port is prepared to receive the stricken cargo ship once it has been safely towed, thus the plan is to tow north to Spain. “This is an operation that will still take some time,” he warned – and the cargo ship and crew are still not out of danger.
Source material: SIC Notícias/ Lusa
