Grounded MSC Baltic III expected to remain for months more

Almost five months after a cargo ship ran aground on Newfoundland's west coast, the Canadian Coast Guard expects it'll take a few more before the vessel can be removed.

Work is well underway to remove the oil and containers onboard The MSC Baltic III, which ran aground in mid-February in Cedar Cove, located near Lark Harbour.

The grounding prompted concerns about the vessel's risk to the environment, balls of tar have appeared on the nearby shoreline.

Bruce English, a senior response officer with the Marine Environmental and Hazard Section of the Canadian Coast Guard, said it took some time to get the cleanup effort underway, but the work has been consistent over the last few weeks.

"This is one of the largest [operations] we've been involved with. We've been involved with large ships before, but never to the extent of this kind of salvage operation," English told CBC Radio's Newfoundland Morning.

"This is pretty complex."

English said insurance company representatives have been on site since the beginning, and he and the public have been reassured the vessel will be removed eventually.

But there still isn't an official timeline for when that work will be completed, English said, but he'd like the fuel removed from the vessel by winter. He added it's likely the vessel will remain at its current location through the winter.

There were six priority tanks filled with heavy fuel on board that are almost all removed, but English said there are still other hydrocarbons that need to be removed with them.

Removing the oil takes time because it has to be heated between 70 C and 80 C so it can be pumped out, he said. That can be hard to achieve with short windows of opportunity to safely board the vessel.

"You have to start over and you get it going again," said English.

The EEMS Dublin is on site, English said, and the work is going more smoothly because it has a walkway.

The Canadian Coast Guard reported in April that tar balls the size of tennis balls have been appearing on the shoreline near the grounded vessel.

English said a response organization and Environment Canada have "ramped" up their shoreline assessments.

"If there's anything on the shore they're finding them," he said. "They're cleaning it as they go."

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