MERWEMOND

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Latest news

Work ship and pontoon floating again

Salvors got the "Merwemond" and the connected pontoon floating again in Dordrecht on Nov 29. Before, the emergency services had managed to stabilize the situation. Residents did not have to be evacuated. However, some recreational craft were towed out of the harbour as a precaution. Oil booms were laid out to collect leaking engine oil. From the evening of Nov 28 until the next morning, the salvage companies managed to get the vessels afloat again after ballast and machines were removed from the sunken pontoon with the help of divers and another crane aboard the Dutch barge "Christiaan Willem“ (MMSI-No.: 244730891). Before, a dolphin had to be removed so that she could access the floated vessels. The pontoon was then brought up with injected air. The slanted crane, which was half on it, was very slowly driven completely ontp the deck of the work ship. It was now hoped that the work on the Korte Engelenburger Quay could be resumed at the end of this week. Dutch report with video: https://www.rijnmond.nl/nieuws/161939/Kraan-werkschip-Dordrecht-staat-weer-recht

Preparations to recover crane and ships in Dordrecht

The salvage of the 45-ton-cran on the sunken pontoon and the "Merwemond" in Dordrecht may only begin on Nov 29. The crane was partly resting on the pontoon which had sunk to the bottom of the port. The salvors were working on the preparation of the recovery. The pleasure boats in the immediate area have now been towed away. As soon as there is enough space, a second pontoon was taken to the port which turned out to be too broad. A pole had to be removed first before the crane can be recovered from the pontoon. The salvors were first to pick up materials from the "Merwemond" and pump it out. There are oil booms in the water to catch any leaking engine oil. Dutch report with photo and video: https://www.rijnmond.nl/nieuws/161916/Bergers-gaan-woensdag-verder-met-berging-scheve-kraan-Dordrecht

Crane on dredger ship threatened to topple

Emergency services on Nov 28, 2017, tried to prevent a crane on deck of the "Merwemond" from toppling over at the Maartensgat in Dordrecht. The crane which was used for repairs on the quay wall at the Lange Gelderse Quay and the Korte Engelenburger Quay threatened to crush pleasure yachts which were moored in the port of Dordrecht. It was being considered,to lift the whole crane up with another crane. The problems started on Nov 27 at 6 p.m. after a pontoon alongside the "Merwemond" started to list due to a water ingress. The crane was half on the pontoon, half on the "Merwemond". The crane and the work ship also started to tilt to port. The pontoon was meanwhile resting on the bottom, the "Merwemond" was flooded. All boats inside the danger zone have been removed now. If the crane falls over, it falls into the water. Measures were taken to prevent possible environmental damage. Oil booms were placed in the water to collect leaking oil. The emergency services and the municipality were drawing up an action plan with a salvage company about how the crane could be safely removed. The problem was that the ships were hard to access as it were inside a construction site surrounded by bulkheads. With the low tide all ships had settled on the bottom. Dutch reports with photos and video: https://www.zhzactueel.nl/2017/11/27/kraan-op-schip-dordrecht-dreigt-om-vallen/#prettyPhoto https://indebuurt.nl/dordrecht/nieuws/bijna-valt-de-hijskraan-om-in-het-maartensgat~43268/ https://www.rijnmond.nl/nieuws/161900/Bergers-nog-hele-dag-bezig-met-scheve-kraan-Dordrecht https://www.ad.nl/dordrecht/hijskraan-op-schip-dreigt-om-te-vallen-in-maartensgat~a39b5ec4/ https://twitter.com/twitter/statuses/935421526102376449