Coast Guard Urges Daylight Salvage to Prevent Further Oil Spills
The Swedish Coast Guard is advocating for the salvage of the TT-Line Marco Polo ferry to begin in daylight tomorrow due to the risk of additional oil spills and other incidents during the process. In a press release, the authority stated, “The Coast Guard advocates that the salvage begin in daylight tomorrow because there is a risk of further oil spills and other incidents during the salvage.”
According to the Coast Guard, the salvage is scheduled to commence at seven o’clock in the morning on Wednesday. The plan is being reviewed in collaboration with the Swedish Transport Agency, and once the authorities have provided their feedback, the salvage operations can start.
Currently, the vessel is not considered to be leaking oil, although three tanks on board have been damaged. Karin Cars, a communicator at the Coast Guard, explained, “These tanks are largely empty of oil as far as we understand, but it is also possible that oil has leaked out in other places in the ship, which could potentially leak out. We cannot say with certainty that more oil will not leak out.”
This recent grounding incident marks the third time the ferry has run aground. The first two groundings occurred on October 22, followed by a third incident on Sunday, when the ship broke loose from the ground and drifted before running aground again, resulting in a larger oil leak.
The oil has already reached the land in the municipalities of Sölvesborg and Karlshamn. However, the spill in Karlshamn is currently minor, and no oil-damaged birds have been found there. Mats Hadartz, who leads Karlshamn municipality’s crisis management group, reassured, “These are very mild surcharges so far.”
In contrast, the situation is serious in the municipality of Sölvesborg, where approximately 50 people are involved in cleanup efforts, focusing on Tocken north of Hörvik. There are currently four remediation sites set up. Additionally, bird rescue operations are taking place in Hörvik’s harbor, with numerous oil-damaged birds requiring treatment.
Stefan Gabrielsson, from Katastrophhjalp Birds and Game, expressed his concern, saying, “There are an incredible number of oil-damaged birds around here. We wash birds every day.” Gabrielsson estimated that there are thousands of birds that have been affected by the oil spill, but they can only be caught and washed once their fitness has significantly deteriorated.
The Coast Guard has so far collected approximately 50 cubic meters of oil and oil waste, indicating the extent of the cleanup operations. The TT-Line Marco Polo, flagged in Cyprus, was traveling from Trelleborg to Karlshamn and was further en route to Klaipeda in Lithuania when it ran aground on October 22.
During the initial grounding incident in Hanö Bay, the ship began leaking oil. It continued to travel for another three nautical miles before running aground again. Since then, cleanup efforts have been ongoing along the coast and at sea.
Investigations have revealed that a broken GPS on board contributed to the grounding incidents, as the crew relied solely on it during foggy conditions. Two crew members have been sentenced to 50 daily fines each for negligence in maritime traffic.