74, 750 litres of fuel oil pumped out on Saturday 26th. The operation was huge and the Salvage Team was able to complete the first, and still the largest part of the salvage operation in the north-western part of the island. The Wen Hang Dar 168 was towed into the Water Ports in the late evening.
88,750 litres of fuel oil in total
The operation was completed at 20:35. With the last drops of oil pumped out, the Salvage Team had buoys fitted to the hull of the vessel to ensure a smooth tow to port. There were certainly small leaks throughout the operation but instead of having 88, 750 litres of fuel spilled in this part of the island, thus this leak is minimal.
The operation was a bit more difficult on this day but less complicated due to the less complicated weather conditions. The Police Helicopter Squad is indispensable in this operation as they are responsible for the airlift of the containers to the tankers under police surveillance, as well as for the weight reduction on the three ships. According to our sources, the Salvage Team would not have been able to achieve such a feat without the participation of the Corail helicopter, which has the capacity to transport 700 to 900 litres of fuel oil in one trip. It carried more than 75 Intermediate Bulk Containers (IBCs) on the day for a total of 55,000 litres. The operation also saw the active participation of other helicopters.
Lightering of Maan Yu Feng 168 and Maan Yu Weng 01
The main part of the operation is underway but there are still 40 tons of fuel oil on the Maan Yu Feng 168 and Maan Yu Weng 01. On this day, the lightning operation was carried out by two helicopters, the Chetak and Fennec. The operation will resume on Sunday 27th and the Salvage team will attack the spot at Bain des Dames. The main part of the lightering will be the transport of the fish in the hold which are already in a state of decomposition and will have to be disposed of. The refloating operation by Polygreen can start once the vessels are lightered. Afterwards, the vessels will be safely towed to the port.
