General cargo ship Sea EMS was left stationary in the mouth of a canal on December 7, south of Fowey, UK in the English Channel. The vessel remained gearless and immobile worryingly close to the UK coastline.
It is believed that the ship was pushed to the rock-strewn shallow water by extremely strong winds and currents. The vessel’s issue was reported to the coast guard and local authorities who proceeded to dispatch a towing tug team to attempt to rescue the stricken ship. Sea EMS was then transported under tow towards Fowey where it was docked for repairs and a routine inspection. Luckily nobody was injured during the accident and the salvaging mission was operated safely.
It has emerged that there is no significant damage to the vessel, but the authorities have issued a cautionary warning that ships should be taking extreme care in in these adverse weather conditions that can develop and worsen exceptionally quickly.
Sea EMS was built in 1996 at the Bijlsma shipyard in the Netherlands and is currently sailing under the flag of Antigua & Barbuda. SEA EMS has 82m length overall and beam of 11m. The vessel’s gross tonnage is 1682 tons.
