Jody F unlikely to leave New Zealand under own power

5.00 pm

Problems for authorities dealing with the stranded log carrier Jody F Millennium will not be over if the ship is refloated.

A decision will have to be made about what to do with the ship if it is too badly damaged to be towed to another country with a big enough dry dock for repairs.

The damaged ship cannot be repaired in New Zealand. It is too wide to fit inside the dry dock at Auckland's Devonport naval base -- the largest in the country -- and at best the vessel faces a long, slow tow to a dry dock in Australia for permanent repairs.

There is speculation it could be towed to Singapore for repairs.

However, until it is off the Poverty Bay sandbank where it has been grounded since February 6, authorities will not be able to inspect it for damage and will not know if it can be taken to sea, even under tow.

If it is very badly damaged from the 12 days it has spent sitting on the seabed off Gisborne, it may not be sound enough to be towed to Australia let alone Singapore.

The 150m log carrier has been stranded on the sand bar off Waikanae Beach since it ran aground as it tried to put to sea to escape a heavy swell buffeting the ship against a wharf in the Port of Gisborne.

The ship has leaked oil through a crack in the hull and maritime authorities confirmed today its steering gear had been written off.

Authorities have also said that with the steering gear badly damaged there is a good chance the propeller and propeller shaft have also been damaged.

Maritime Safety Authority (MSA) spokeswoman Helen Mojel said the MSA was discussing the future of the ship with its lawyers under the provisions of New Zealand maritime law.

She said MSA lawyers were looking through the Maritime Transport Act to establish the responsibilities of the New Zealand maritime authorities.

She said the ship had been declared a hazard and an order had been placed on the ship stopping it from being moved out of Poverty Bay.

"If they get it refloated they have got to take it somewhere in the bay and put divers down and have it surveyed to see what needs to be done.

"We are looking at what to do next. If it doesn't go out of the bay then what? What kind of conditions are we looking at putting on it so it is safe, where ever it goes, however it goes?"

She said the MSA needed to be confident the ship was sound enough to be towed safely around the New Zealand coast without danger of it breaking up, sinking, and causing more environmental problems.

"We also don't want to dump her on another port where it (the oil) might spill. We have all the equipment there in Gisborne.

"While the people in Gisborne might not like it, it is the best place for it to be."

Ms Mojel said salvors now hoped to refloat the ship on Wednesday after turning the bow seaward.

The Australian-based, ocean-going tug Kerra was connected to the stranded ship today in preparation for the attempt at refloating.

The ship was still ballasted to keep it in place on the seabed. Ms Mojel said if the ship felt lively enough to be moved off the sandbank, they would try to refloat it before Wednesday.

Heavy fuel oil had been moved above the water line, reducing the risk of pollution if the hull was seriously breached.

Ground tackle was also laid during the weekend by the tug Pacific Chieftain.

The door to the engine room had been sealed off to minimise a risk of flooding from the damaged rudder stock.

- NZPA

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