Tug takes contaminated oil and water from crippled warship

12.00am

Contaminated oil and water from the British warship crippled in a grounding at Lord Howe Island off the Australian east coast, has been loaded onto a New Zealand tug.

The New Plymouth-based Pacific Chieftain was commissioned by the Royal Navy to help in the salvage of the guided-missile destroyer HMS Nottingham after it ran aground at Lord Howe Island on July 7.

The ship nearly sank when several forward compartments, including the forward engine room, water tanks and sleeping quarters flooded.

A light oil slick escaped from the ship after it backed off the rocks, the vessel then saved by frantic damage control efforts by the crew.

The slick was thought to be mostly bilge water from the engine room and not a threat to the environment at Lord Howe Island.

Andy Neville, of Swire Pacific Offshore Marine, which operates the Pacific Chieftain, said the contaminated oil and water pumped from the destroyer into the tug's holding tanks would not be dumped at sea.

"It will be dumped at a shore facility somewhere."

The tug had been at the island, about 300 nautical miles east of Australia, since last week, preparing to tow the warship stern-first to Australia for further repairs and assessment.

The tow may begin in eight or nine days with another tug attached to the bow to stop the ship yawing. A third tug, the Austral Salvor, would be on standby.

Mr Neville said the Royal Navy had hoped the ship could be towed at four or five knots. The port which would take the ship has not been identified by the Royal Navy although there has been a suggestion it could be Melbourne which has facilities to take a damaged ship.

During the tow the rudder and propellers would probably be locked in place Mr Neville said. The ship is unable to provide its own motivation power although its generators were still working.

The damaged compartments had been shored and patched but many of the holes in the hull could not be repaired until the ship reached a dry dock

- NZPA

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