Costa Concordia oil removal works underway
Costa Concordia, seen here in happier times, now lies semi-submerged in a protected marine nature reserve.
SMIT Salvage divers have begun preparations to remove some 2,400 tons of fuel from the stricken cruise liner Costa Concordia.
A full bathymetry survey undertaken over the weekend has apparently established that the vessel has stabilised on the rocky outcrop off the Tuscan island of Giglio where it has rested semi-submerged since hitting rocks there on 13 January. Search and rescue divers had been called off on earlier occasions when the vessel shifted. Its location is only metres from significantly deeper water.
Sixteen bodies have been found thus far and a similar number remain missing. Italian authorities gave SMIT permission to begin works on Tuesday, as search operations continued.
Together with its local partner Fratelli Neri, SMIT had made good progress
in preparations for the oil removal, with its divers having inspected the forward section of the submerged ship and marking the drilling locations of the heavy fuel oil tanks.
On Wednesday, the inflating of the oil barrier boom was initiated and the first booms were being installed. These oil booms will serve as a second inner protection barrier around the ship. An outer boom and a boom along the shoreline were already installed.
Before the pumping of oil can commence, SMIT Salvage divers will need to place hot tap valves on the outer hull of the vessel and drill holes through the hull into the oil tanks.
Discussions over the weekend with the Italian authorities had established that the single oil containment boom around the ship must be a double boom. The emergency response oil removal vessel Salina Bay, owned and operated by the Island Bunkers Oil Group and contracted to the European Marine Safety Agency has been mobilised by SMIT from its Italian base at the port of La Spezia. It is equipped with sweeping arms, booms and a skimmer.
The initial vilification of the ship’s captain, Francesco Schettino, has been tempered by remarks made by Beniamino Deidda, the chief prosecutor investigating the shipwreck, who said the role of the ship’s owner must also be considered.
That theme was amplified by the Nautical Institute, which noted “with extreme disquiet” the manner in which the ship’s owners accused their employee of unprofessional conduct before any investigations could take place.
Images for this article - click to enlarge
Unless otherwise stated, all images copyright © Mercator Media 2012. This does not exclude the owner's assertion of copyright over the material.
