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USCG developing plan to move cargo ship stuck in Delaware River
The United States Coast Guard is trying to figure out how to move a massive cargo ship that ran aground along the Delaware River.
PHILADELPHIA - The United States Coast Guard is trying to figure out how to move a massive cargo ship that ran aground along the Delaware River.
The Alogma Verity bulk carrier ran aground just outside the shipping channel just north of the Ben Franklin Bridge off of Petty Island.
"I saw it on Facebook that there was a big boat stuck, so I came down," said John Awad of Fishtown.
The grounded 623-foot cargo ship has become somewhat of a tourist attraction along the banks of the Delaware River.
"We usually just do our daily walk here in Penn Treaty and heard the boat ran aground and wanted to see what’s going on and why it’s not moving," said Dimitri Krasnopolsky of Fishtown.
The Bahamian-flagged Supramax bulk carrier ran aground just southwest of Petty Island about 6:30 Wednesday night.
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The Coast Guard says a team from Sector Delaware Bay and the vessel’s representatives are on board monitoring the situation and formulating a plan to safely move the vessel to a nearby terminal.
Carrying 45,000 tons of solar salt used in water softening, the ship was on its way to a port in Fairless Hills, in Bucks County, when it ran aground. It’s not clear if it was heavy winds or a mechanical issue that diverted the vessel from the shipping channel. According to MarineTraffic.com the ship was listed as "Not Under Command" as of Thursday night.
"Does it need a high tide? A low tide? How is it going to be unstuck? I thought can that tug boat actually push that boat out of here?" questioned Marissa Rebecca of Fishtown who was walking along the banks of the river. They are questions the U.S. Coast Guard and the Army Corp of Engineers are trying to figure out.
"It is surprising. Philadelphia is a pretty busy port. Ships coming and going all the time. So, you just don’t hear about this very often," said Lee Cox, an underwater archaeologist with Dolan Research, of Newtown Square. He provides technology and research for the marine industry, including underwater sensing services.
Cox is an expert on the Delaware River. He says the good news is there have been no reports of pollution. He thinks crews will use sophisticated multibeam imaging equipment along with side scan sonar technology to figure out the best way to re-float the ship, preferably at high tide.
"One thing I think they are likely to do, the shipping company, is to do survey work around the vessel to see the best path for pulling it off the bar," added Cox.
He says another option would be to offload the ship’s contents to make it lighter. It’s unclear how long any option will take. Until then, the cargo ship continues to draw attention along the waterfront.
"Yesterday, we were walking around low tide, and I was thinking what if someone gets stuck there. It’s happened today," said Olena Hrytsyk of Fishtown.
The Coast Guard has established a maritime safety zone around the Algoma Verity to restrict shipping traffic from the Benjamin Franklin Bridge to Tioga Marine Terminal. Vessels wishing to transit the area will need to contact the Coast Guard Command Center one hour prior to transit by radio on VHF channel 16 or by calling the command center hotline at 215-271-4807.