The 131 foot (40 meter) clipper (Schoeneraak) De Tukker went aground while attempting to enter Amble Harbour, United Kingdom. Reports state the crew didn’t realize it was at low tide and didn’t have enough clearance over the sandbank. No one was injured. The RNLI was able to pull the De Tukker into deeper water. The De Tukker is a training vessel used in a program to help trouble youth.
Program website: http://www.zeilschipdetukker.nl/
The 800 foot long tanker Ratna Puja went aground on the Mississippi River near the area called Head of Passes, the area where the Mississippi River breaks into several fingers into the Gulf of Mexico. The tanker had left Plaquemines Perish with a cargo of carbon black oil and was heading southbound towards the gulf when it became stuck. Tugs were able to pull the tanker free a few days later. Reports state the vessel suffered no damage and no oil was released. Authorities stated the Mississippi River has an irregular channel due to the the large amounts of mud and sediment carried from earilier flooding. The Army Corps have 5 dredges in operation in the area and draft restrictions may be enforced.
A 110 meter long passenger ship’s bow struck the Jochenstein lock wall while sailing from Passau to Budapest. With 160 passengers on board, the vessel suffered 10,000 € damage to the bow. All the damage was above the waterline and the ship was allowed to continue on to Budapest. The lock sustained damage around 5000 €. No one was injured in the incident. The lock was able to opperate and boat traffic was not impacted. Report from lock kepper at Jochenstein, Germany.
