Efforts to rescue the stranded ship continue

The expert team coming from Istanbul to remove the dry cargo ship that ran aground in the storm off the coast of Artvin’s Hopa district, started repair and damage assessment work at the bottom with divers. Local people watched with interest from the beach the work on the ship, the moving process of which was a matter of curiosity in the district.

In the Eastern Black Sea, on November 27, the Palau-flagged 3500 gross ton dry cargo ship ‘FR Pearl’, owned by Esenyalı Ship Management, returned empty after unloading its cargo to Georgia’s Batumi Port, and anchored off the coast of Hopa due to the storm. The ship, drifting in the increasingly intense storm, ran aground on the beach near the port. A total of 13 crew members, including 6 Turks, 5 Azerbaijanis and 2 Indonesians, were trapped on the ship, which suffered damage to its bottom; He was rescued by AFAD, Coast Guard, AKUT, police and fire brigades with the roller steel rope system installed between the ship and the land. The ship’s personnel, who were brought to shore, were taken to a safe area and checked by the medical teams waiting in the area for precautionary purposes.

It was learned that the engine of the ship that ran aground became unusable, there were tears in the bottom of the ship and the tanks were filled with water. The expert team that came to the district from Istanbul started working to save the ship.

Two rescue options are being considered on the ship, and a special team is carrying out repairs, inspections and damage assessments at the bottom with divers. Two alternatives are being considered for the ship, where investigations are ongoing. It is planned to repair the damaged part of the ship and tow it to a safe area with tugboats. If repairs cannot be made, the ship is planned to be dismantled on shore. The ship rescue operation, which is expected to take a long time, will be carried out after the research work on the ship bottom is completed.