A 366-meter containership CSCL Jupiter is stranded on the Westerschelde estuary near Bath, the Netherlands, following a grounding incident from earlier today. “We can confirm that the CSCL Jupiter ran aground on the Westerschelde estuary near Bath,” Dutch Rijkswaterstaat confirmed to World Maritime News.
At least five tugs were sent to the scene to attempt to refloat the Hong Kong-flagged containership amid low tide, however; as the efforts proved unsuccessful, activities on pulling the ship free are scheduled to resume this evening after 20:00 hrs.
The cause of the grounding incident is yet to be disclosed.
According to the preliminary assessment, there is no major damage on the ULCV and the ship doesn’t pose a threat of an environmental pollution.
Based on the ship’s AIS data, it was en route from Antwerp to Hamburg when it ran aground at 08:30 this morning.
The 14,074 TEU ULCV, built in 2011, is operated by COSCO Shipping Lines Co. In 2015, China Shipping Container Lines (CSCL) and COSCON announced plans to restructure and integrate key assets.
All shipping traffic for large commercial vessels at the Westerschelde has been closed until further notice for safety reasons. Small commercial vessels can pass through the Schaar van de Noord.
The Port of Antwerp said in a tweet that due to the incident shipping traffic to/from the port will probably be impossible until tonight.
Rond 15:00 is het eb. Het schip komt aan de voorkant steeds meer boven het water te liggen. #Bath pic.twitter.com/sse6lX4em3
— Mark Rijk (@MarkRijk) August 14, 2017
World Maritime News Staff; Video Courtesy: ShippingHarbors