Seli-1 Aground off Cape Town
Last week was a bad week for bulk carriers. The MV Black Rose, a bulk carrier with a crew of 27 which had loaded 23,847 tons of iron ore, sank near the port of Paradip on the east coast of India. All but one of the crew were rescued. The Chief Engineer is believed lost.
MV Black Rose Sinks Off Paradip Port
In South Africa, near Cape Town, Seli 1, a 29-year-old Turkish bulk carrier, bound for Gibraltar, loaded with 30,000 tons of coal, ran hard aground. She is carrying 660 tons of oil and there is serious concern that she will break up and pollute local beaches. Known as the “Cape of Storms”, Cape Town’s coastline at the tip of Africa is a notorious stretch where the Atlantic and Indian Oceans converge, claiming many vessels which run aground on beaches or hit submerged rocks.