Received by Email from sources, with picture. Thanks....
"Yesterday the carrier vessel that had recently arrived off Luanda with the Global Sante Fe Drill Rig "Aleutian Key", moved to deeper water to ballast down and float the Key and in approximately 18 metres of water the operation began.
Unfortunately the operation could not be stopped once started and the carrier vessel now lies at the bottom of the sea.
No need for ROV assistance to locate the vessel as the top of the crane
can be seen protruding from the surface."
The press release goes like this...
On the morning of December 6, 2006, the semisubmersible vessel Mighty Servant 3 developed a list and sank after the offloading of the drilling rig, GSF Aleutian Key. The vessel is resting at the sea bottom in approximately 62 meters of water. The drilling rig did not sustain any damage and is underway to its drilling location.
All of the 21 crew of the vessel have been taken off the vessel and are on their way to the Port of Luanda on board of one of the supporting vessels on stand by during the offloading. The 83 crew of the drilling rig were all safely on board of the drilling platform at the moment of the incident.
The vessel is approximately one mile off the North Angolan coast and very close to the entra
nce of the port of Luanda. Local authorities have been informed and are assisting in the response effort.
The cause of the incident is not known at this time, but is being investigated.
The 27,720 dwt. vessel is Dutch flagged and sails with a combination of Dutch and Filipino crew. Families of the crew members have been informed. Crew members will be repatriated to their home destinations as soon as possible.
The Mighty Servant 3 has an open deck of 40 metres wide and 140 metres long. The vessel can move cargoes weighing up to 25,000 tons.
Mighty Servant 3 is equipped with a counter weight system enabling use of the ship's horizontal semisubmersible capabilities without using the aft buoyancy casings. The Mighty Servant 3 is capable of loading/discharging floating cargoes overhanging all three sides of the 40 meter-wide cargo deck.
nce of the port of Luanda. Local authorities have been informed and are assisting in the response effort.