Russian Cargo Ship Adrift off Haida Gwaii

[DeepFrz]

All one of them? I bet it already does.

[Sea7King]

Yeah, you'd think they couldn't all quit at once....
That's what Carnival Cruise Lines thought a couple of years ago!

[CaptTom]

For the record, I'm not suggesting having a cargo ship aground in that area would be a good thing. Spilling Fuel and mining chemicals would be bad anywhere, especially a pristine location.

But not Exxon Valdez bad. Simushir, built in 1998 in Lemmer, Netherlands, is a 9405 DWT, 135 m x 17 m general cargo ship.

Exxon Valdez was a 214,861 DWT, 301 m x 51 m VLCC with a capacity of 1.48 Million barrels of crude.

I can't find the exact capacity of Simushir's fuel and cargo tanks (if any). News reports suggest she's carrying 400 tons of bunker oil and 50 tons of diesel. Even if the news got it right, that's 2,958 barrels of bunker. Somewhat shy of 1.48 million barrels.

If you compare news photos of Simushir to historical photos, you'll also note that she's riding pretty high above her fully loaded waterline, so if there is a lot of tankage below decks, it probably is nowhere near full.

If you're looking for photos, include former names: Munteborg, Msc Baltic and Munteborg.

As for engines, there is almost certainly only one. Cargo ships are built for efficiency, not speed.

[Watermann]

A ship such as this will typically only have one main engine, either a low-speed, direct reversing type or possibly a medium-speed with controllable pitch propeller.

There are at least two main generators and most likely three or more on a container ship due to reefer loads, bow thruster etc.

The main engine and generators have independent fuel systems and typically the main is only run on bunker fuel/HFO while the generators are run on MGO, though some are also capable of running on HFO. Emissions requirements particularly in the USA and CA specifically have changed/are changing that though.

There is also a completely independent emergency generator located above the main deck with its own dedicated fuel supply.

The main engine's fuel booster pumps, lube oil pumps (maybe) and electronics require ship's power to run. No generators, no main engine.

[DeepFrz]

Had this been a super tanker, or even a tanker not much larger than Simushir, there very well may have been a major spill. The Gordon Reid was just barely able to move Simushir away from the coast before she broke her last tow line allowing enough time for the tug to arrive. Apparently too, the weather moderated a bit, which helped. They are saying that it still may be days before she reaches port at Prince Rupert.

[DeepFrz]

She has just shown up on AIS in Dixon Entrance moving at about 6.2 kn. They are saying a pilot should board about 1:00am Monday morning. Interesting that the tug has not shown up on vessel tracking yet but the Sir Wilfrid Laurier has.

[DeepFrz]

The Simushir is docked in Prince Rupert today. I did notice that the Port Authority had a vessel moored nearby for much of the day. Inspections or just keeping an eye on things?

[DRussell]

Thanks for the updates on this story I have been following it on the news sites but they don't have some of the details seen here.

Are you a prince rupert resident? terrace resident checking in


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[DeepFrz]

Actually I'm in Winterpeg. I have been using Live Ship to keep track of the goings on.
Live Ships Map - AIS - Vessel Traffic and Positions - AIS Marine Traffic although you get anomalies like the "Armond", a sailing vessel doing 96 knots in the harbor...look out, there she went.

From "The Northern View".

“The Charles Hays Patrol vessel has been out on the water since early this morning and has had a close look at the exterior of the Simushir and it appears to be in good condition as we anticipated,” Michael Gurney, the Port of Prince Rupert's manager of corporate communications, said.

That's what the Port Authority boat was doing.

The problem was an oil cooling pump failure but because of the rough seas could not be worked on at sea. A simple problem probably costing millions.

[DeepFrz]

The Simushir is finally underway, just north of Haida Gwaii.