Authorities are working toward plans to re-float the Manahau barge that ran aground on a Westport beach over the weekend.
Maritime New Zealand said the near 100m Manahau barge, a Westland Mineral Sands barge, ran aground at Carters Beach about midnight Saturday during a storm.
It had 11 people on board. No-one was injured and there were no leaks. There was also no cargo on board at the time.
Yesterday, it was reported that the barge may be grounded at the Westport beach for a number of days as Maritime New Zealand worked alongside local and regional authorities to ensure the safety of any plans.
In an update today, Maritime New Zealand said contractors managed by the operator, Westland Mineral Sands, were on site today to continue work with the vessel.
The agency also said plans were ongoing to bring in a specialist tug boat from Taranaki to support a potential re-float this week.
“Maritime NZ wants to reaffirm people need to stay away from the vessel. It is an operational area, and is highly dangerous,” a spokesperson said.
“As the matter is under investigation, we are not in a position to talk about the events leading up to the grounding.”
A Westland Mineral Sands Group spokesperson told 1News that a specialist recovery team arrived in Westport last night to assist recovery of the Manahau at Carter’s Beach.
“All 11 crew remain safely on board and additional food supplies will be delivered to them later today. There are no environmental concerns,” they said in a statement.
Westland Mineral Sands said it continued to work closely with local councils and Maritime New Zealand about beach access.
“We have engaged an independent expert to conduct a thorough investigation to help us understand how this incident occurred.”
TAIC opens inquiry
In a statement, the Transport Accident Investigation Commission’s acting chief investigator Louise Cook said the agency had opened an inquiry into the grounding of the Manahau with an appointed a team of investigators scheduled on site later today.
“Getting the facts straight is vital, so our investigators will be inspecting the vessel, seeking and recovering electronic and other records and interviewing vessel crew, Westport authorities and any other witnesses.
“We’re gathering all the usual evidence for the start of this sort of investigation — including voice and voyage data recordings and video footage,” she said.
Cook said a protection order has been put in place to preserve and protect evidence from onboard records and equipment.
“The protection order prohibits any person from accessing the items listed unless permitted by the commission. It doesn’t prevent the master and others from attending to the safety of the vessel, environment or people on board.”
The Transport Accident Investigation Commission opens an inquiry when it believed the circumstances of an accident or incident have — or were likely to have — significant implications for transport safety, or when an inquiry might allow the commission to make findings or recommendations to improve transport safety.
The commission’s purpose was to improve transport safety by avoiding repeat accidents, rather than by apportioning blame.