The 140 meter long, 7004 dwt freighter Sania ran aground on the Volga-Caspian Sea Canal near the 126.9 kilometer mark. The master of the Sania ignored warnings from the pilot and traffic authorities before steering the vessel into shallow water. A tug was dispatched and was able to refloate the vessel later the same day. No reports of injuries, damage or pollution being released. The Sania proceeded to Olya to be inspected. The Sania was bound for Amirabad from Astrakhan with a cargo of 6080 tons of grain.
The 109 meter long, 6270 dwt freighter Hakki Cillioglu went ashore during a storm on the Black Sea at Pitsunda, Abkhazia. The Hakki Cillioglu was berthed in the port for refueling when high winds caused the mooring lines to break. The winds pushed the freighter onto the near by beach. No reports of injuries. The freighter Apsini attempted multiple times to pull the Hakki Cillioglu off the beach, but failed after the tow cable snapped. No reports state other attempts to salvage the freighter will be attempted.
The Hakki Cillioglu had been moored in the port for several months after the vessel suffered a mechanical failure with the steering system. While in port, the vessel ran out of fuel and only a small number of crew remained on board. Before the vessel went aground, it was not certain if the owner has sufficient funds to repair the vessel and pay the crew.
Photo: haberjet.com
In October 2010, the Hakki Cillioglu ran aground near Constanta, Samsun, Romania. The freighter had been at anchor outside the port waiting to get a new cargo loaded when a storm struck. The storm caused the anchor chains to drag until it grounded some 50 meters from the shoreline. The crew of nine were rescued safely and the vessel was refloated by a tug soon after.
The 114 meter long, 8700 dwt bulk freighter Chang Da 12 went aground and broke-in-two near the coast of Pangasinan, Philippines. The freighter was in rough seas with 6,000 tons of bitumen in the cargo hold when the hull cracked just forward of the engine room. As waves smashed into the hull of the Chang Da 12, the crack grew until the bow section broke free. Reports state some of the cargo spilled into the ocean, but would not cause harm to the environment. The Philippine Coast Guard has arranged salvage for the vessel. No further details reported.
The Chang Da-12 has wrecked once before near the same area. The freighter struck the rocky shoreline of Aren Point along Barangay Abagtanen in Agno on December 19, 2011 while loaded with more than 6,000 metric tons of coal from Indonesia en route to China. The vessel was reported then as being severely deteriorated and considered extremely unseaworthy. The Coast Guard report stated that cargo vessel suffered engine trouble and steering problem causing it to go adrift before it eventually ran aground. The ship’s master order the crew to abandoned ship and they were rescued by local fisherman in the area.
