Rena fragile but stable; more containers removed, but more bad weather coming

Maritime NZ -

Salvors are preparing for severe bad weather this weekend, with a low pressure system expected to arrive on Saturday afternoon, and the worst weather expected on Sunday.

This is forecast to result in a maximum sea state of 6-7m, which is among the worst weather to be forecast so far.

Salvors will continue to make the most of the good weather expected for today and tomorrow to remove containers.

Fourteen containers were removed from the no.7 hold of the vessel yesterday and loaded onto the ST60, bringing the total number on board the barge to 15.

This leaves an estimated 898 containers still on board Rena. Salvors will today focus on removing containers from the no.6 hold, as this presents the easiest access for container removal.

357 containers have now been landed, with none brought ashore yesterday.

Salvors will be working on pumping gas from the no.5 hold so to make the space safe for accessing containers once no.6 has been completed.

Work is continuing on erecting a temporary gangway between the forward and aft sections of ship, with a more permanent structure to be built.

Pumping of oil remnants from the no.5 starboard fuel tank was carried out for 35 minutes yesterday.

The ship remains in a fragile but stable condition, with electronic sensors on board showing no significant change.

Weather conditions yesterday meant divers were not able to inspect the underside of the vessel.

Divers hope to be able to inspect the recent damage to the vessel today, but this will only occur when it is safe for them to enter the water.

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