Crap runs aground... huh, Krat that is

I am sure you have all seen the dramatic pictures of the Malta registered bulker, Krateros, whic ran aground just inside Vancouver's harbour, near the famed Lions Gate Bridge. The image from Vancouver Sun's Mark van Manen

shows that quite an unsual sight was experienced by the many onlookers from Stanley Park's seawall.

The paper reported that no pollution escaped but that the ship was aground for several hours before 5 tugs and the high tide could nudge her off the rocks. The ship is now sitting at anchor in English bay just outside the harbour.

The Krateros is a 1992 Japanese built ship under class by DNV. It is managed by Nikator Navigation of Piraeus Greece, it has a dead weight of 43,595 tons. According to Equasis and partners, the ships was inspected in Vancouver, under the Paris MOU and 6 new and outstanding deficiencies were reported on the 19 of september, almost 6 days before the grounding, although no detention was registered.

Read the Vancouver Sun story here. CKNW, the local radio news's report is below...

Freighter runs aground off Stanley Park

Sep, 25 2006 - 11:40 PM

VANCOUVER/CKNW(AM980) - The Maltese freighter that ran aground off Stanley Park around 5 o'clock Monday afternoon has been re-floated with the help of a team of tugboats.

The Krateros, carrying a shipment of grain, was bound for sea when it experienced some kind of mechanical problem. After about two hours, high tide helped tug crews float the freighter, which has been re-anchored in the inner harbour.

Captain Chris Badger speaks for the Vancouver Port Authority, "The Transportation Safety Board will go and do an investigation and find out what happened and obviously, out of that, make some recomendations for the future as well." Marine traffic was tied up during the incident.

Badger says there were no injuries and no substantial damage to the vessel.