This is what the fuss is about.
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| The chimneys of Fawley oil refinery on the mainland to the left |
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| The Red Funnel car ferry that runs betweeen Southampton and Cowes has a close-up view of the Huegh Osaka |
The ship, the Huegh Osaka, a car transporter, left Southampton dock Saturday evening bound for Germany. Less than an hour later it ended up on Bramble bank, a large sandbank in the Solent, listing very badly. Thankfully no one was injured, all the crew are safe. No oil spillages either. But the ship is going nowhere for a while. There is a team looking into how to salvage the ship and it's cargo of 1400 cars. I think we may be visiting Cowes again in the next few days.
We certainly weren't the only interested spectators along the esplanade. It was almost as busy as Cowes Week, just a lot colder. Half the Island, it seemed, was keen to see the sights and get some photos. There was a good deal of speculation as to the cause and how it ended up somewhere it really shouldn't have been - ships have to negotiate Bramble Bank and keep to the dredged shipping channel that skirts around it - but now we know that the ship was deliberated grounded on the bank to keep it clear of other shipping, it's position makes a little more sense. Why it began to list so dangerously is still not clear.
On the same day, however, in stormy seas off of the Orkneys in northern Scotland, another cargo ship suffered a far worse fate, and it very sadly appears that the crew have been lost with their ship. A somber reminder of the power of nature.
We certainly weren't the only interested spectators along the esplanade. It was almost as busy as Cowes Week, just a lot colder. Half the Island, it seemed, was keen to see the sights and get some photos. There was a good deal of speculation as to the cause and how it ended up somewhere it really shouldn't have been - ships have to negotiate Bramble Bank and keep to the dredged shipping channel that skirts around it - but now we know that the ship was deliberated grounded on the bank to keep it clear of other shipping, it's position makes a little more sense. Why it began to list so dangerously is still not clear.
On the same day, however, in stormy seas off of the Orkneys in northern Scotland, another cargo ship suffered a far worse fate, and it very sadly appears that the crew have been lost with their ship. A somber reminder of the power of nature.
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