Reef suffers ‘significant damage’

[Jason]

Passengers on the Norwegian Crown cruise ship which ran aground between Spanish Point and Dockyard will be treated to a special cocktail party as they sail back to the US this evening, having already been given complimentary wine and a free bar to make up for the disruption to their holiday trip.

But in their wake they leave behind a scene of destruction visited upon the reef that was hit when the 34,000 tonne ship struck the bottom while attempting to enter Dundonald Channel as it sailed from St. George’s to Hamilton on Wednesday morning.

A preliminary check of the area by divers has revealed “significant damage” in the immediate vicinity of the accident, and over a wider area a large amount of sediment stirred up by attempts to free the passenger ship have covered other areas of coral.

It is expected to take many days before an accurate assessment can be made of the full extent of the underwater damage, however the damage includes an obvious seabed scar where the cruise ship, which was carrying almost 1,700 passengers and crew, came to rest at 8.30 a.m. on Wednesday.

“In the immediate vicinity there was significant damage to the coral. Certain areas were obliterated and there is a scar where the ship was,” said Jack Ward, director of the Department of Conservation Services.

“A fair bit of sediment moved during efforts to re-float the ship, so there has been an inundating of coral by sediment – in places to some depth – and we are in the process of getting a better feel for it.”

Mr. Ward said the reefs were not “pristine” beforehand because of their closeness to the main shipping channels and the regular impact of sediment being stirred up.

But he said: “These are live corals, even though they may not be spectacular.”

The sediment churned up during attempts to re-float the cruise ship has buried coral in a wider area. The effect of the sediment depends on how long it remains in place.

Mr. Ward said a big storm in the next few weeks may free the coral from the sediment, but this was not guaranteed. He added: “The corals will grow back. It is not an irreversible process, they will grow back.”

A full report will be made to the Environment Minister following the incident. The ship was eventually re-floated on Wednesday evening when high tide lifted her clear of the underwater obstruction.

The ship was under the navigational guidance of a local pilot at the time of the accident. Norwegian Cruise Line officials are on the Island conducting their own investigation, as is the Government.

An inspection of the ship by divers had “found two significant indentations both in the bulbous bow area, the rounded portion of the bow” said the Ministry of Tourism and Transport in a statement.

A team of divers from Miami was last night due to carry out a further check on the ship’s hull before its due departure this morning at 7 a.m. for the return trip to Philadelphia.

An underwater Belco electrical supply cable that runs across the same area was not affected by the accident, although the company switched to overhead power cables on Wednesday as a precaution.

Belco vice-president Linda Smith said its divers had not yet been able to carry out a visual inspection of the cable to see if its outer housing had been damaged, but expected to do so in the next few days.

Susan Robinson, a spokeswoman for NCL, said passengers compensation claims would be dealt with on a case-by-case basis. The company has already served complimentary wine with dinner and provided an open bar. A cocktail party is being hosted on the ship as it sails back to the US this evening.

Praise has been given to the crews of the tugboats Powerful, Faithful and Edward M. Stowe by Director of Marine and Ports Services Francis Richardson, and the department has also given acknowledgement to the expertise of former director of marine and ports Ron Ross and pilot warden Edward Welch during the rescue operation.

Senior Nautical Surveyor John MacPartland is to conduct the Department of Maritime Administration’s investigation into the accident.

Source: Scott Neil, Royal Gazette

[JoeyandDavid]

thats a shame :undecided:

[Joanandjoe]

Wow, I wouldn't have thought about the environmental damage; but I guess that hitting a reef doesn't do much good for the reef. Bermuda, which is really a seamount, is definitely a tough place for ships, with wrecks galore.

[zebra]

That's too bad! The channel certainly looks very difficult to navigate though.

[Brady121291]

:cool: That will affect tourism, as far as I know it is a fairly spectacular reef that was affected, hopefully it'll recover!

[Joanandjoe]

Our understanding is that cruise ships often arrive outside the reef in the middle of the night, but don't pass through the reef until daybreak. A tough channel, indeed!