US ship to be lifted off reef as it takes on water

From the Manila Standard Today (Jan 25): US ship to be lifted off reef as it takes on water

Philippine and US authorities have decided to lift the US minesweeper USS Guardian from the Tubbataha Reef by using a crane ship, an official said Thursday. “The Task Force Tubbataha and the US Navy have chosen lifting to salvage the USS Guardian,” Coast Guard chief information officer Armand Balilo said. He said US authorities had contracted Singapore-based Smit Towing Co. to lift the 68-meter-long ship, put it on a salvage barge and bring it to a shipyard.

The Philippine Coast Guard has said the USS Guardian has damaged 1,000 square meters of Tubbataha Reef. The minesweeper itself was damaged and taking on water, and would have to be lifted off the rocks in an operation that could last another week or two, a US Navy official said. Balilo said the process of extracting the fuel from the minesweeper was under way and could be completed within 48 hours. He said US Navy personnel had begun draining the USS Guardian of fuel.

Before the USS Guardian could be removed from the reef, about 56,000 liters of fuel would be siphoned off to avoid spills, Rear Adm. Thomas Carney, commander of the Navy’s Logistics Group in the Western Pacific, told reporters.

The ship, which is based in Japan, crashed into the reef before dawn Jan. 17 while on its way to Indonesia after making a rest and refueling stop in Subic Bay, a former American naval base west of Manila.

All of its 79 officers and crew were transferred to two other US vessels the following day for safety reasons as the 1,300-ton ship was unable to maneuver on its own and buffeted by strong winds and waves.

Carney said the ship was hard aground about 30 meters from the edge of the reef, a marine sanctuary that is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. “It’s got hull penetration in several places, and there is a significant amount of water inside the ship right now,” he said.

Philippine coast guard chief Rear Adm. Rodolfo Isorena said efforts to remove the fuel had been hampered by the rough waters and another attempt would be made Thursday.

Carney said heavy items aboard the ship would be taken off to lighten it before the vessel was loaded on another ship or barge. He said the operation could last a week or two. “I want to express my deepest regret for the circumstances that we are all in right now,” Carney said.

He said an investigation would look into all the factors that might have led to the grounding, including a reported faulty digital chart, sea conditions, weather and the state of the ship’s navigational equipment.

The Philippine government has said it wants to fine the US Navy for the damage and illegal entry into the marine sanctuary. Angelique Songco, head of the Protected Areas Management Board, which is in charge of the reef, says the government imposes a fine of about $300 per square meter of damaged coral plus about the same amount for rehabilitation and other violations.

Carney said that after the ship was removed, the damage to the reef would be assessed and the two governments, which have close military and political ties, would discuss any claims.

http://manilastandardtoday.com/2013/01/25/us-ship-to-be-lifted-off-reef-as-it-takes-on-water/