Saturday 19 / October / 2024
Salalah: A powerful tugboat anchored at Salalah is steaming to the rescue of a stricken vessel off the coast of Mombasa in Africa, according to the port’s harbour master.
Responding to a distress call from the MT Teresa Arctic, a stricken cargo ship off the coast of Mombasa, a rescue boat, which recently docked at the Salalah Port is en route to help re-float the vessel, which had begun to sink after running aground, 55 miles off the Kenyan coast.
The CSC Nelson, a special rescue boat, which docked at the Salalah port to refuel and resupply on June 20, had departed for its next port of call, which, coincidentally, was Mombasa, when it received the distress signal and slightly altered course to aid the Teresa Arctic, which is carrying 46,000 tonnes of vegetable oil.
“The Nelson was here for about six days and is now on the way to Kenya, with the next declared port of call being listed as Mombasa,” said Capt. Sukhdev Singh, harbour master for the Port of Salalah. “Whenever there is a distress call, the coastal stations circulate this among themselves to see who can help them the fastest.”
“Rough weather in the Arabian Sea was what likely caused this ship to call for distress at sea,” he added, speaking exclusively to the Times of Oman. “Right now, it is the southwest monsoon across the Indian Subcontinent, so the Arabian Sea is very rough at this time of year. This is characterised by gale-force winds, which caused waves to rise up as high as five to six metres.”
Singh also described the manner in which rescue boats were outfitted, to best help the vessels they’re often sent to rescue.
“These rescue boats are often high-powered, with specialised towing winches, that have wires that are 600 metres long and specifically designed for towing ships,” he explained. “It has enough fuel capacity to be able to pull ships to any port of refuge.
“They also have fire-fighting capabilities and enough storage space for fuel, because when they are towing ships, they cannot travel at a speed of more than two or three knots, as opposed to a speed of 10 or 12 knots when they are travelling otherwise.”
Registered with the Comarco Group in Mauritius, the 14,400 horse powered Nelson was built in 1982 at the Odenses Staalskibsvaer shipyard in Denmark. Flying under the flag of the Cook Islands, the boat has been specially fitted for maritime rescues, and is equipped with a 1,200 metre tow cable on its starboard side, and a 970 metre tow cable on the port bow.
It also carries a 550 metre anchor-handling winch, and two additional winches, capable of handling up to 10 tonnes each. Powered by four diesel engines, the Nelson’s navigation is aided by two propellers and two rudders.
In addition, fire fighting capabilities have also been installed on the Nelson, which is also capable of traversing icy waters. Secured by two anchors, the ship features three thrusters and is equipped with four back-up diesel-run generators and four turbines with which to turn these cables.
The Teresa Arctic, on the other hand, is registered with Singapore’s Lydia Shipping Company, with its home port at Funafuti in Tuvalu. It’s been in service since 1988, having previously gone by the names Petrobulk Mars, Sitamia and Therep.
