The Mumbai Maersk was this morning reported to be en route to Bremerhaven after it ran aground in the North Sea just off Germany on Wednesday.
The megaship grounded outside Bremerhaven, all crew were reported safe, there was no pollution, and no sign of hull breach.
According to media reports, the entrance to the Port of Bremerhaven, one of the largest ports in Europe, has not been impacted.
The 19 630-TEU vessel was on its way from Rotterdam to Bremerhaven.
Maersk’s released the following statement on Wednesday:
We can confirm that on February 2, at around 23:00 CET, Mumbai Maersk was grounded outside Bremerhaven, Germany.
All crew are safe, there is no pollution, and no sign of hull breach.
The vessel is on ground on a shallow patch and as such the entrance to the port is not obstructed and port operations are running as normal.
Sailing from Asia, the vessel had its last stop in the port of Rotterdam before grounding outside of Bremerhaven.
The vessel was on its way to discharge and consequently the cargo meant for Bremerhaven is still onboard, along with cargo destined for the Scandinavian countries.
A first attempt to free the vessel has been performed unsuccessfully. Extra tugs are being deployed and a new attempt is expected at the coming high tide around midnight on February 3.
The vessel is believed to be carrying 7 380 containers.
The cause of the grounding is speculation at this stage.
