Bulker Aground off Mombasa

A Singapore-flagged dry bulk carrier JS Danube ran aground after hitting a rock some two nautical miles off Kenya’s port of Mombasa on Tuesday, Nairobi’s local The Star reports.

Despite the fact that the grounding happened close to the port, Kenya Ports Authority started the rescue operations seven hours after the accident.

The cause of the accident seems to be high waves and strong winds. At the time of the accident, the 2012-built ship was laden with 46,000 tons of coal.

All 25 Ukrainian crewmembers were rescued, with no reported injuries. There seems to be no pollutants coming from the 63,500 dwt vessel, and the extent of the damage is still unknown.

The Star reported one of the crewmembers as saying that the crew had been sleeping at the time of the accident. The unnamed crewman also said that after being woken by a loud bang, the crew thought they had been attacked by pirates.

The ship is managed by a French company Setaf Saget.

World Maritime News Staff