Rena`s oil hits NZ beaches, ship`s break-up averted as seas calm

SALVAGERS, working the stricken 3,300-TEU Rena that ran aground off New Zealand`s north island last week, say the ship is still at risk of breaking in half despite surviving a severe pounding in heavy seas which have since subsided, Reuters reports.

Tauranga, the country`s biggest export port, has announced it will suspend operations for a working day to remove debris from inside the harbour and check shipping channels.


Five-metre high swells, which had stopped pumping operations aboard, fell to metre-high waves, raising hope that salvaging would recommence. Meanwhile, the ship continued to disgorge bunker fuel, which has aroused anger as oil-covered birds and fish wash up on shore.


Large splits have opened up down the middle of the hull, which stuck the reef through which 300 tonnes of oil have poured into the sea.


The owners, Athens-based Costamare Shipping, have apologised. "For us, one drop of oil in the water is one drop too much. It is therefore a matter of great regret that a ship associated with us should be the cause of so much anguish," said managing director Diamantis Manos in a video statement.


The ship was chartered to Geneva`s Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC), the world`s second largest container shipping company after Maersk Line, and engaged in MSC`s trans-Tasman service between New Zealand and Australia.


The navigator at the time, holding the rank of second officer, appeared in court on negligence charges, as his captain had done the day before. The 37-year-old Filipino was bailed out without plea. The charge carries a maximum fine of NZ$10,000 (US$7,800) or 12 months in jail.


Three tugs have been steadying the ship to keep it on the reef and stop the after section breaking away and possibly sinking in water up to 90 metres deep.


More containers have fallen into the sea, where the ship was listing at 20 degrees, more than the 12 degree portside list reported the day before. Eighty-eight of the 1,368 containers aboard have been lost and authorities said one was carrying a hazardous substance, which can explode on contact with water.


Maritime New Zealand closed 40 kilometres of coast to discourage people wanting to help. Groups numbering 500, including soldiers, have gathered clumps of oil, some as large as dinner trays. Hundreds of residents have joined in, ignoring warnings to stay away.


More than 50 tonnes of oil have been recovered from long, golden beaches, the magnets for surfers. But tide is washing up more, which experts say could go on for weeks.