Kiel Canal Remains Closed following Ship Collision [PHOTOS]

MV Siderfly as seen 10.28.2013. Image Credit: CCME

The Kiel Canal in Germany remained closed Tuesday after a Monday morning ship collision left one vessel in danger of sinking and leaking diesel into the busy waterway.

As gCaptain reported yesterday, the 100-meter coastal freighter “Siderfly” (carrying fertilizer) collided with the 116-meter gas carrier Coral Ivory (carrying Ammonia/fertilizer) just a few miles past the canal locks at Brunsbüttel, located in northern Germany at the mouth of the Elbe river.

The collision tore two large holes in the port side of the Siderfly, causing the vessel to list heavily against an embankment of the canal. The Coral Ivory sustained little to no damage in the collision and the ship is currently in the port of Brunsbüttel. No injuries reported amongst the 28 total crewmembers of both vessels.

An update Tuesday from Germany’s Central Command for Maritime Emergencies said that as of this morning the Siderfly has been stabilized as plans for salvage get underway. The update says that the oil recovery vessel Servant Sand is on scene and will begin recovery operations. Meanwhile, authorities meeting in Brunsbüttel have determined that the first course of action will be for crews to pump the remaining diesel from the Siderfly before divers attempt to seal the leaks.

Authorities say that the Kiel Canal could partially re-open late Wednesday morning depending on the outcome of these operations.

The Siderfly was on its way from Brunsbüttel to Antwerp while the Coral Ivory from Brunsbüttel to Uusikaupunki in Finland when the collision occurred at around 3 a.m. local time.

INCIDENT PHOTOS:

AIS Replay from Vessel Finder

Ship Particulars:

Coral Ivory: 6,875 DWT LPG tanker, 116m, Dutch-flagged, 19 crew (Ukraine and Russia)
Siderfly: 4,380 DWT general cargo ship, 100m, St. Vincent & Grenadines-flagged, 9 crew (Lithuania and Russia)

The Kiel Canal is the world’s busiest artificial waterway and runs for almost 61 miles, linking the North Sea at Brunsbüttel to the Baltic Sea at Kiel-Holtenau. In 2012, a total of 34,879 ships transited the canal according to data from Kiel-Canal.org.

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