What Crew Members Say About Surabaya-Voyager

On December 23, recovery efforts on the Hongyuan 02 made significant progress as most of the containers were successfully lightered. Despite the bow of the vessel being submerged, the hull remained stable throughout the operation. After six diligent days of work, a total of 320 containers weighing nearly 10,000 tons were removed from the ship. Crews managed to patch the holes in the hull and effectively pumped out water from the cargo holds. To further ensure stability, 8-ton anchors were deployed 300 meters in each direction from the vessel. The completion of the stabilization work is anticipated within a day or two to prevent the ship from rolling due to wind and wave action. For further details and images, a Chinese report is available at http://news.hsdhw.com/416361.

On December 15, 2016, at 11 p.m., the container vessel 'Hong Yuan 02' (宁波籍集装箱船“鸿源02”) experienced a grounding incident on a reef located to the west of Small Huanglong Island, positioned at 30° 37'00" N / 122° 50'50" E, north of Zhoushan. The ship was navigating through the East China Sea, traveling from Jingtang to Humen in Guangdong Province when the accident occurred. The vessel suffered damage to its bow, leading to substantial water ingress and causing the ship to submerge at the front and develop a 20-degree starboard list. 'Hong Yuan 02' was carrying 864 containers of 20 feet and 68 containers of 40 feet, totaling approximately 29,000 tons of cargo. Salvage operations were promptly initiated. By December 16 at 10:30 a.m., 13 out of the 21 crew members were evacuated via patrol boat 0743. At 12:40 p.m., the crane ships 'Man Yang 2004' and 'Man Yang 208,' equipped with divers, arrived on scene, later joined by 'Tangfeng 56' and 'Tengfeng 58.' Efforts were made to correct the vessel's list from 20 degrees to a more manageable 12 degrees to starboard. Reports indicated strong water ingress in cargo holds 1 through 3, with minimal flooding in hold 4 and no water found in hold 5. Fortunately, the salvage team reported no oil spills at the incident site. As the ship continued to tilt, concerns grew regarding its stability and potential to capsize. Subsequently, at 11 p.m. on the same day, all remaining personnel aboard were evacuated onto the patrol boat. The situation continued to unfold on December 17, when shortly after midnight, salvage vessels 'Man Yang 2004' and 'Man Yang 208' returned to the site. By 2:30 p.m., eight crew members reboarded the ship to assist with the lightering operation. The process of container removal began at 5:05 a.m., with 23 containers successfully offloaded by 8:30 a.m. That evening, tanker 'Pu Yuan 1' arrived to support heavier fuel removal efforts, which commenced at 10:30 p.m. By December 20, the cargo m/v 'Jing Run 168' (IMO-No.: 412767110) had arrived on site as the ongoing salvage efforts continued. This incident highlights the risks associated with maritime navigation in challenging environments. Chinese media outlets have reported extensively on the situation, providing additional coverage and photographic evidence of the rescue operations.

In a notable transaction within the maritime industry, a vessel has been successfully sold to Polaris Shipmanagement Co. Ltd., based in Singapore. This strategic acquisition is expected to enhance Polaris's operational capabilities and strengthen their position in the competitive shipping market.