Cargo ship will be stuck in mud 'for a month'

1 day ago

Richard Madden

BBC News

The H&S Wisdom was heading to a port near Scunthorpe when it ran aground on Sunday

Octovision Media A red and blue cargo ship stuck in mud in the Humber, with brown waters to either side. The photo is taken from an aerial perspective. — The H&S Wisdom was heading to a port near Scunthorpe when it ran aground on Sunday

A cargo ship that ran aground in the Humber estuary is likely to remain in the channel for "the next month", officials have said.

H&S Wisdom became stuck near Brough as it made its way to Gunness Wharf Port near Scunthorpe on Sunday.

Three attempts have been made to refloat the vessel, but the BBC has now been told the tide conditions will not be suitable for a further attempt until the beginning of April.

The crew of H&S Wisdom are expected to remain on board the vessel until it is refloated.

David Roberts, the chairman of Humber Rescue, said it would be another month before the ship could be refloated.

"We attended three times to put the lines on board for the tugs, but it was not successful," he explained.

"The tides in the estuary are now dropping off and we'll now have to wait for a big spring tide to make another attempt."

Crews from Humber Rescue have been working to refloat the vessel

Humber Rescue On the right, a Humber Rescue lifeboat can be seen on the estuary with two men operating it and wearing red lifejackets and helmets. A large blue and red cargo vessel can be seen in front and to the left. — Crews from Humber Rescue have been working to refloat the vessel

Humber Rescue was contacted by the ship after it ran aground at 21:08 GMT on Sunday.

An initial attempt to refloat the vessel proved unsuccessful.

Following discussions with HM Coastguard Humber, a further attempt was made on Monday morning using three tugs. A third attempt was made at 18:00 the same day.

According to the Vessel Finder website, H&S Wisdom is a general cargo ship which was built in 2004. It currently sails under the flag of the Netherlands.

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