SALVAGE IN PARADISE

on the 18th of March 1994 a report comes in that the bulk carrier Oceanos has grounded firm on a reef air pacific basic research shows up the ship's vital statistics named Oceanos 37,000 tons gross built 1993 a brand new vessel carrying 70,000 tons of Australian coal owners and underwriters are contacted and vests Miller offers the Lloyds open form the standard Salvage agreement no cure no pay the location is a special challenge almost as far away from anywhere else on the globe as one might imagine and environmentally very vulnerable the Veneman wreath of the small Pacific island of SATA wall in the Caroline's on spec vest Miller's salvage tug Jaguar on station in Manila receives instruction it's 20-knot capability still means a sea journey of five days meanwhile negotiations finalize the acceptance of the contract with owners and underwriters and preparations begin for provision of necessary equipment and manpower expertise focus on the tribe the necessary gear is hauled out of stock special compressors pumps hosing and underwater cutting and welding equipment not easily available locally are checked prepared for shipment and loaded for the airport within 24 hours of the Lloyds form signed the equipment and the team are on their way to Guam the nearest base to the grounded vessel the first physical evidence of the support from headquarters support that will straddle the world in Singapore ver smeller has its own Regional Support Office its assistance will prove essential the staff have already been fully informed of developments and made aware of the complex nature of the refloating assignment SATA wall island is not visited often located in the middle of the Pacific Ocean as member of the Caroline Islands with Vice molar Salvage on its way the island is now set to be the scene of a salvage and paradise the Oceanus is very firmly stuck and at the mercy of what is often heavy weather in the region the hurricane season is about to start the area is largely untouched by the modern world and the local population and wildlife are thus clearly vulnerable to the damaging effects of pollution meanwhile vessel and naval architects put vessel details in the computer calculations are made of the optimal means of refloating her alternate plans are already being worked out to cover all eventualities and what if situations taking into account the specific local situation it is decided to make a first attempt to refloat the Oceanos without cargo transfer to repose we try to leave on the Jaguars 90-ton Balad full will be fully utilized the preparations at the site are in the hands of the 7 man basmalah team who have arrived from Guam on board phasma love partners target sea husky at about the same time as the Jaguar the 80 millimeter diameter tow wire is connected by the salvage team the double drum which in operation for the pull the Jaguar makes best efforts to tow the Oceanus off the reef but the cargo of coal and extra water in the breech tanks mean it is a heavy load the proximity of the island and reef demands the greatest care in manoeuvring the attempt fails the Oceanus is simply too heavy and firmly aground the computer confirms the salvage experts experience the alternative plan is put into operation ground reaction will have to be reduced and this will involve removal of cargo to another vessel as well as dewatering breach tanks search starts for a suitable lighter egde fess alaria a modern headquarters analyzes load distribution and required cargo removal sufficient buoyancy for the refloat will be created by full dewatering of tanks and the transfer of a considerable quantity of cargo a suitable light ridge vessel has been found the coal manor is in Singapore but with insufficient crane capacity the local vascular representative prepares to instruct the yard to ship Longreach cranes and other equipment for loading on the Col Manor the 28,000 ton deadweight kameena is rigged with cranes and prepared for the ten-day voyage to SATA well load spreaders are installed on the call Mainers decks to carry the heavy equipment the presence of local offices worldwide means vas Miller can give full backup not only to owners and underwriters of both ship and cargo but also to its own salvage teams everything has to be made see first for the three thousand mile voyage from Singapore to Sutter well these preparations and the available equipment have to be right the Col Manor will not easily be able to come back for something she might have forgotten support from a Mardan is essential it will be ten days more before the coal miner is on site because the Oceanus is in Micronesian waters being under American protection permission has to be requested through the Micronesian embassy in the US relations between base mullahs u.s. office in Palm Beach and the Micronesian authorities are good the mission for the operation is swiftly granted with the coal manor under way from Singapore the salvage team arrives from the Jaguar to meet local people for the first time it is an extraordinary place largely untouched by influence from the industrialized world SATA wall enjoys the fruits of freedom but also the privations of inaccessibility according to local custom the vase mullah crew bring gifts to the island chief that are normally unobtainable locally they include two pigs and two hundred chickens good local relations contribute to success the team makes best efforts to get the islands only mechanical vehicle running the sea climate has wreaked damaged - a gift from the US after a past hurricane the vase mullah team are offered the best of local hospitality and local specialities and the team gets every encouragement in return for the gifts from the salvage team the Islanders offer the team their own gifts they are loaded on board for what might be an extended exercise while the coal miner is steaming towards SATA while the team prepares to implement the instructions of baseman Abel architects all double bottom tanks have to be sealed to allow full pressurizing because the side hoppers and bottom tanks were linked to the topside tanks these also had to be sealed pressurizing them would otherwise have probably damaged the deck the work was mainly done at night going to the heat inside the ship's tanks during daytime many meters of hose will be necessary for dewatering the bottom tanks all put carefully into place with necessary pomp capability all in preparation for the final refloat finally the coal miner arrives after its 10-day voyage from Singapore preparations are rapidly made to bring the coal Manor alongside this will require very careful maneuvering in the shallow waters between the casualty and the island the coal miners screw is high in the water proof of a minimum draft vessel first the Jaguar needs to come alongside to transfer further Salvage equipment brought in from a vase Miller a maiden for massive fenders will keep the hulls apart during the later each exercise the Bobcat earthmover will be used to obtain the correct cargo weight distribution in the hold of the Oceanos the additional 400 CFM compressor will be used to D water the bottom tanks the Jaguar remains on standby during the moring exercise while the Ecole Manor is assisted by the local partners tugs the lady Mariana and sea husky the Oceanos meanwhile is stabilized in position by full ballasting of all tanks to minimize further hull damage and prevent untimely refloating the proximity of the beach is a constant reminder of the shallow water under the hulls the mooring operation is managed by vessel as experienced Salvage master the coal manor meanwhile only has 50 meters with sufficient under keel clearance finally the two vessels are brought into position for the cargo transfer operation the cargo discharge sequence has been calculated on the computers in a mountain the key here is the avoidance of stresses on the damaged hull the long reach grab cranes start the transfer of the necessary 14,000 tons of coal required to lighten the Oceanos and the work continues day and night the heavy-duty blue tarpaulins supported by tuner nets ensure no loss of cargo into the clean sea waters of the reef every effort is made to protect the environment and keep things clean work continues while the weather holds but the forecasts are not promising and as so often in Lake projects the weather lives by its own rules 12 days after starting her discharge tasks and carrying almost all of the required coal the coal miner had to leave the fully ballasted Oceanos due to a serious deterioration in the weather the tugs and the coal Manor head for the relative safety of the leeward side of the island the Jaguar remains on standby near the casualty it is now decided that a refloat attempt will be made now I stopped four hours later the Jaguar is connected for the second refloating attempt the compressors and pumps are in full operation for pressurization and dewatering of the Oceanos the attempt starts the radar doesn't yet show movement but early morning on the 3rd of May the Oceanos finally is moving the Oceanos propeller wash is mixed with white coral dust there is absolutely no evidence of any coal pollution in the water-based mother salvaged master in charge of the operation together with the captain of the Oceanus and the PA severe on the bridge should be the Jaguar does its work well the Oceanos is refloated with all its tanks under pressure and escorted by the Jaguar and sea husky the Oceanos now proceeds under its own power to Guam here it will be inspected prior to its voyage for discharge and hull repair the propeller will certainly have to be repaired over its full length the hull shows numerous punch holes where the reef pierced the thirty two millimeter hull plates pieces of coal are still stuck in the holes the damage could have been worse ballasting the vessel and careful maneuvering minimize damage to the vessels hull parts of the two bilge keels and lodge hanging plates had to be removed and cracks were all given stop holes to prevent growth as per class requirements under direction of basmalah the Oceanus would soon reports to its discharge port of your sue and repair port of ulsan in korea the salvage finally ended two and a half months after the first news of her misfortune the ship was then seven months old she was still less than a year old when returned to her owners all thanks to some enthusiastic support from local people and the salvage expertise on their smaller thanks to and thanks from the village and the people of subtle

Channel: Svitzer Global

Views: 231,753

Rating: 4.7654586 out of 5

Keywords: Salvage in paradise, bulk carrier, OCEANUS, Island of satawal, re-float, SVITZER Salvage, SVITZER, Salvage team, salvage operation, salvage tug, YAGUAR

Id: N1YXsV6553w

Length: 21min 24sec (1284 seconds)

Published: Wed Mar 19 2014